Medicaid Telehealth Flexibilities Set to Expire September 30th - Congressional Extension Needed

 

One of the silver linings of the Covid-19 pandemic (yes, there were a few of those) was the expansion and acceptance of telehealth.  Trying to keep people isolated to help control the spread of the disease probably helped, but it also meant people in need of healthcare didn't have an easy way to seek contact with a medical professional.

Fortunately the proliferation of broadband Internet connections and smart software engineers came in as a big plus.  Remote healthcare became a well known reality.  Congress quickly passed legislation that allowed medical professionals to treat patients without physical contact.  Many patients now rely on telehealth for all kinds of appointments.  This is especially helpful to US citizens on Medicaid.  

However, that emergency legislation came with some limitations and one of those was that its use was only legally allowed for a limited amount of time.  At the time, no one knew if there would be problems that would occur from this new service and no one wanted to vote it into permanent status without the system getting a chance to take it for a test drive first.

Obviously we all know the benefits that come from telehealth.  Unfortunately, until recently not many people knew or remembered that the service for Medicaid patients was on a limited trial basis.  That legislation is set to expire on September 30th.  That has brought with it a full court press from the healthcare industry to get US legislators to quickly pass another extension that will allow it to continue.

The good news is that, in addition to professionals voicing support, many health insurance companies are also on board for an extension.  Recently 48 health systems signed a letter sent to the Senate Majority Leader (John Thune), the Senate Minority Leader (Chuck Schumer, the Speaker of the House (Mike Johnson), and the House Minority Leader (Hakeem Jeffries) encouraging the legislation to continue.

There don't seem to be many times that doctors and insurance companies are on the same side of an issue, but this is certainly one of them.

If you'd like to read the letter sent to the legislative leaders, you can access it with this link.