The Trump Administration is rolling out another unprecedented blanket waiver from CMS to expand Telehealth provider eligibility, adding to an array of temporary waivers and new rules established to aid the healthcare system in bypassing significant red tape to provide Americans the services they need amid the outbreak.
An interim final regulation was issued on April 30 from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) allowing all practitioners able to bill Medicare for services to be classified as eligible telehealth providers for the remainder of the pandemic.
Under the public health emergency, beneficiaries nationwide can now receive Medicare Telehealth services regardless of their location. Services will be provided to new and existing patients, plus providers are able to waive copayments for traditional, fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries
As part of the CARES Act, CMS is waiving requirements of video technology for visits, permitting audio-only evaluations as well as behavioral health counseling and educational services. The service must still be a real-time, interactive communication between provider and patient.
The agency is also waiving practitioner eligibility requirements, allowing physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech language pathologists to utilize telehealth to administer Medicare services.
For more on the changes to Telehealth, take a look at The National Law Review.
Check out the agency’s waiver here.
To read more about the Telehealth exceptions for audiologists, check out The American Academy of Audiology.
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