ATA: 'Telemedicine hitting the zenith'

Congressional action, expanding coverage and greater investment are all driving increasing use of telehealth, according to the latest "This Month in Telemedicine" talk from the American Telemedicine Association (ATA).

The association itself also is experiencing growth with more members and a bigger budget. This year’s annual conference, coming up next week in Los Angeles, will be its biggest yet, said ATA CEO Jonathan Linkous.

ATA Chief Policy Officer Gary Capistrant said the repeal of the sustainable growth rate (SGR) will aid efforts to increase the use of telemedicine as well. Included in the legislation is a new program to start in the fall of 2016 to drive alternative payments. That will put an end to restrictions against use of telemedicine, which is a “big step forward,” he said.

Also part of the SGR legislation is the directive for the Government Accountability Office to conduct two studies—one on telehealth in general and one on remote monitoring. Lastly, the SGR package includes directives to develop quality indicators for telehealth and remote monitoring that will become part of the way physicians will be reimbursed.

Capistrant also mentioned the recent Senate subcommittee hearing that addressed telemedicine. While “it’s rare to have a Congressional hearing specifically on telehealth,” 17 senators attending which is “an unheard of turnout.”

Also related to Capitol Hill, Capistrant said the Telehealth Enhancement Act was introduced in both the Senate and Congress last year and will be reintroduced this year. “This is more activity than we’ve ever seen.”

Meanwhile, states have been active when it comes to telemedicine as well. Arkansas and Washington are the latest two states to pass parity laws which means that 24 states and Washington, D.C. now have such laws on the books. Another 13 states have parity legislation pending.

ATA issued the first of its gap reports last fall which graded states on 17 different indicators of telehealth. Some have improved their grades while others have lowered their performance, said Linkous. But, some are very focused on working toward better scores.

The organization’s work has taught them a lot about how telemedicine services are provided, he added. Some use a separate company while others have a group of primary care providers giving these services to their own patients. Some use their own platform and some are tied to their portal. “The whole market is gradually changing. I’m not sure if anyone knows exactly where it’s going.” Providers in this space are allowing their customers to decide if they want to conduct care via video or audio. About 800,000 consultations have been done so far this year in the format of telemedicine, he added.

“It’s a very interesting time. Telemedicine is hitting the zenith.”