Advocacy group calls for telehealth expansion, waiver of Section 1834(m) restrictions
In a letter to Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Marilyn Tavenner, the Alliance for Connected Care outlined its position on using telehealth services in accountable care organizations (ACOs).
The Alliance for Connected Care, a telemedicine advocacy group, said telehealth should be available to all Medicare beneficiaries receiving care from any ACO.
The group agreed with CMS that a waiver of Section 1834(m) restrictions on telehealth reimbursement would help two-sided ACOs improve health outcomes and reduce costs, which are the stated goal of the CMS Shared Savings program.
The authors cited a systematic literature review that found patients with congestive heart failure who received telemonitoring had a 15 percent to 56 percent reduction in mortality compared with patients who did not receive the intervention. That study also found that the use of telehealth for patients with congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and stroke often led to reductions in hospital admissions and readmissions, short lengths of stay in hospitals and fewer emergency department visits.
“The Alliance appreciates CMS’ consideration of all of its recommendations and looks forward to the agency’s implementation of telehealth services in the ACO Shared Savings Program without any of the current restrictions in Section 1834(m),” Alliance for Connected Care executive director Krista Drobac wrote in the letter. “Telehealth can and will help ACOs achieve the cost, quality, access, and patient engagement goals for which they strive. It is time to lift the section 1834(m) restrictions on the coverage and reimbursement of telehealth services so ACO providers can have another important tool in realizing the potential of new care delivery models.”
Executive Editor
Tim Casey joined TriMed Media Group in 2015 as Executive Editor. For the previous four years, he worked as an editor and writer for HMP Communications, primarily focused on covering managed care issues and reporting from medical and health care conferences. He was also a staff reporter at the Sacramento Bee for more than four years covering professional, college and high school sports. He earned his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Notre Dame and his MBA degree from Georgetown University.