Today is the last day of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE), and policies are rapidly shifting to accommodate the post-pandemic healthcare landscape in the U.S.
On Tuesday, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced that it would continue allowances for telehealth companies to prescribe controlled substances for six...
Providers who use telehealth platforms are already concerned about the restrictions they will face if the public health emergency (PHE) ends and COVID-19-related waivers for telemedicine expire. But new rules from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will further complicate their practices.
Under the DEA's new rule, patients will...
The U.S. has a new dominant COVID-19 variant, XBB.1.5, which is reportedly twenty-five times as contagious as the original strain of coronavirus. Meanwhile, seniors and people of color bear the burden of high rates of transmission and death as a result of the virus.
New research demonstrates that the death toll of COVID-19 in...
Last Friday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill ahead of the Christmas deadline. The legislation includes big news for the healthcare sector, which responded to the bill with mixed feelings.
One major health policy provision in the package extends key Medicare telehealth flexibilities and...
On Tuesday, 375 health, tech and telemedical organizations sent a joint letter to leadership of the U.S. Senate requesting action on telehealth legislation prior to the expiration of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE). The letter requests an extension to the telehealth policies enacted at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic that...
On July 26, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule that included new payment model for rural emergency hospitals (REH). The designation seeks to alleviate financial disturbance in the continuity of care provided in areas with limited medical resources by shifting from an inpatient bed model to...
Hospital finances regressed in April 2022 after showing signs of improving earlier this year, according to a new report by Kaufman Hall. The report tags the spring surge in hospitalizations for COVID-19 patients as the main culprit in hospital economic downturn.
According to the Flash Report, hospitals experienced a fourth straight...Toolbox
When the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a public health emergency January 30th, 2020 the American healthcare system changed overnight. The global pandemic has altered both the way patients are receiving care and the teaching platforms used to educate prospective healthcare...
In the wake of a pandemic that forcibly accelerated the adoption of telemedicine, insurers are starting to offer virtual-first plans at lower costs and they are being met with both enthusiasm and concern.
Some of the biggest players in health insurance—Humana, UnitedHealthcare, Kaiser Permanente—have started offering...
VillageMD is expanding its primary care presence in partnership with Walgreens throughout Texas and has announced expansion of its Arizona venture in partnership with the Hatfield Medical Group of Arizona. Amazon has reportedly approached several potential insurance partners to expand its coverage of services.
VillageMD is continuing...Arizona News
There were 769 new cases of COVID-19 in Arizona on Wednesday, bringing the state total to 894,875. There were six new deaths, the total is now 17,936. Almost 46% of Arizona residents are vaccinated against COVID-19. Only 8% of intensive care unit beds are in use by COVID-19 patients and 15% of ICU beds are available.
This...Arizona News
Governor Doug Ducey signed HB 2454 last week, which increases telemedicine services for Arizonans and providers. The legislation covers not only a wide range of services now covered by telemedicine, but also prescriptions. Julia Strange of Tucson Medical Center told KVOA4 what this means to rural Arizonans specifically:
One of the most...News
Last March, the American healthcare system scrambled to adopt telemedicine out of necessity. And now, as patients and providers have taken a liking to its convenience and efficiency, the industry looks toward establishing the post-pandemic telemedicine landscape.
During the pandemic, Medicare expanded access to telehealth for...White Papers, E books, Reports and more
The Commonwealth Fund, a private foundation that assesses quality of care provided by the United States healthcare system, looked into the effect of the pandemic on outpatient visits overall. The Fund issued reports tracking weekly outpatient volume, and in April it found the number of visits to ambulatory care providers declined 60% and...Arizona News
The Apricus Health Network, an Arizona-based Direct Contracting Entity (DCE), is busy signing up providers and offering patients continuous care augmented by health monitoring technology and telemedicine.
Direct Contracting is a set of new payment models that are designed to allow organizations to take on more risk, and to save...National News
Telehealth was a natural solution for a pandemic that made person to person contact risky. Now, as a light emerges at the end of the tunnel, experts look toward the future of virtual medicine.
One national telemedicine platform, CallOnDoc, told Forbes that they are seeing people use the platform for chronic conditions. In...National News
Last Thursday, a bipartisan group of representatives introduced a bill to the House of Representatives that would solidify some changes made by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services regarding telehealth coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill would allow telehealth visits to be conducted from a patient’s home and...Arizona News
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the face of healthcare as we know it. As in-person visits become in many cases impossible, the role of telemedicine has become essential.
In Arizona and elsewhere, healthcare providers are turning to technology to deliver care at a distance like never before.
Dr. Ateev Mehrotra, an...Arizona News
The coronavirus pandemic poses a myriad of problems for healthcare entities across the country and many see telemedicine as a solution to some of them.
Providers have been gradually implementing telemedicine services slowly for years. But as the need for separation between people has become suddenly paramount, the pace of its...Arizona News
Banner Health, eVisit, and VeeMed are joining forces to create a “Banner-branded virtual care platform” focused on ambulatory and acute virtual care.
According to a press release, the platform will provide,
...virtual urgent care, virtual primary care, virtual specialty care, tele-behavioral health, tele-stroke, and...
