If a bipartisan effort in Congress is successful, Medicare and the rest of the country are headed for wider, deeper use of telemedicine. Only about 20% of the country's Medicare beneficiaries have access to telemedicine because of restrictions limiting funding to rural areas, according to legislators. The Medicare Telehealth Enhancement Act introduced last week would expand Medicare reimbursement to the other 80% of the country and encourage in other ways the remote monitoring of patients using telecommunications technology.
'We Need To Use Smart Innovations' Two Democratic representatives -- Mike Thompson from California and Bart Stupak from Michigan -- co-authored HR 2068 with two Republicans -- Sam Johnson from Texas and Lee Terry from Nebraska. "Allowing doctors to remotely monitor a patient who has congestive heart failure not only helps the patient stay healthy, it also reduces costly visits to the emergency room. The Obama administration has indicated that telemedicine will be an important part of their health care reform agenda, and I look forward to working with them to expand access to this important technology," Thompson said.
"Where you live shouldn't determine the quality of health care you receive," said Johnson. He added, "Technology has advanced to allow doctors to take care of patients in any location. It's time to modernize Medicare to make it even more accessible."
"Telemedicine is a critical piece to the future of health care," Terry said, adding, "By using telemedicine we can increase the efficiency of health care while keeping costs down especially to our rural areas of the country." According to the four lawmakers, the bill would:
• Eliminate geographic restrictions on reimbursement for telemedicine;
• Authorize $30 million in telehealth grant and resource funding by creating a new grant program worth $10 million, and reauthorizing two existing programs -- the Telehealth Network Program and the Telehealth Resource Centers Program -- each with $10 million in funding;
• Expand coverage of telehealth services to home health services and remote patient monitoring; and
• Expand eligible health care providers to include all Medicare providers.
MORE ON THE WEB
Thompson's press release on bill
We Care Where the Patient Lives and We Provide Care Where the Patient Lives
Telemedicine is not only coming, it is here. The technology has been available, but getting to the people where they live has not been as easy as many hoped. The Medicare Telehealth Enhancement Act may be the answer for many organizations who are questioning how they will reach all the patients within their area, and how they will pay for it.
Rehabilitation Systems has been using telemedicine to provide electronic classrooms for self-pay participants who may receive a tax refund. If the Medicare Telehealth Enhancement Act is passed reimbursement for telemedicine will be available for those who currently do not qualify for the tax refund. For those who do not have Medicare the self-pay classes will still be available, but we look forward to other payers following the Medicare route. The electronic classroom is also beneficial to home health agencies that include rural areas.
The services don’t need to be reserved for rural areas though, all patients with chronic conditions can benefit from more education about their disease whether they live in a rural area or not. Expecting people to come to a room at the local hospital may not be reasonable, but logging into an e-classroom may increase the number of people able to participate.
Studies have shown that those who receive more education about their chronic illness manage it better and rely less on hospital services.
If you are living with a chronic condition and want more education, as well as guidance for improved function, contact us about upcoming classes.
