Telehealth
Updated On Feb 25, 2022
This information is meant to be used for educational purposes to inform providers, patients, and genetic service delivery stakeholders about genetics policy topics. Sharing of information, resources, or policy statements is no way an endorsement of stated positions by NCC.
Introduction
Telehealth, also called telemedicine or virtual medicine, is the provision of medical services in encounters that are not face-to-face. These can include phone calls (i.e., audio only) or communications with both audio and video.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will pay for some genetics professionals to use telehealth with covered patients. A fact sheet can be found on the CMS website. Individual health insurance companies may have their own policies. The Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP) website has information on individual states’ telehealth policies, including Medicaid reimbursement policies.
There are many factors that influence a provider’s ability to provide care by telehealth. For example, there may be:
- Licensing issues:
- If Sarah, who lives in State A, goes to State B to see a doctor in-person, the doctor’s license in State B allows him to see Sarah. However, if Sarah is at home in State A while the doctor is in State B, his license may not allow Sarah to be seen by telehealth. To see Sarah while she is in State A, the doctor may need to have a medical license in State A.
- Reimbursement issues:
- Will the health insurance company pay for a visit that is done by telehealth? It may be that a provider needs the patient to come into the office to be paid for the episode of care. Or, if it is done over the telephone, the payment to the provider may be decreased.
- Practical considerations such as how secure the video software and internet access is:
- John doesn’t have Wi-Fi at his home, as he lives in a more rural area of the state. When he needs Wi-Fi, he typically goes to the library to access their free Wi-Fi. However, John is uncomfortable having his appointment with the doctor at the library, as he has no privacy.
Legislation and Regulation
Medical providers have greatly expanded the use of telehealth in recent years, with rapid expansion taking place due to the coronavirus pandemic. Likewise, the number of policies regarding telehealth use have grown. Some of these policies were enacted on a temporary basis during the coronavirus pandemic to provide access to medical care. For example, the Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) allowed providers to provide telehealth services using software that did not fully comply with HIPAA rules, while the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) also made it easier for providers to provide telehealth visits and expanded the types of visits that could be conducted by telehealth. For more information on these temporary policy changes during the coronavirus, please visit the HHS website.
A fact sheet on Medicare telehealth can be found on the CMS website. Individual health insurance companies may have their own policies. The Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP) has information on individual states’ telehealth policies, including Medicaid reimbursement policies, which can be accessed here.
Are you interested in learning what your state’s government or the federal government are currently proposing for either legislation or regulation? Check out Legislative/Tracking system for up-to-date information and subscribe to our Twitter channel to get the latest updates in your pocket.
Policy Positions
Organizations working within the genetics community (national genetic organizations, advocacy organizations, etc.) have published positions on telehealth. Explore these position statements below.
On this Page