Changes in Medicaid telehealth policies due to COVID-19: catalog overview and findings
- Collection:
- Health Policy and Services Research
- Author(s):
- Libersky, Jenna, author Soyer, Elena, author Masaoay, Telyse, author Coit, Margaret, author Edelberg, Rebecca, author
- Contributor(s):
- Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., issuing body. Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (U.S.) issuing body.
- Publication:
- Princeton, NJ : Mathematica, June 4, 2020
- Language(s):
- English
- Format:
- Text
- Subject(s):
- COVID-19 Medicaid Telemedicine United States
- Genre(s):
- Technical Report
- Abstract:
- Federal Medicaid statutes and rules give states broad flexibility to establish policies that govern the use of telehealth. Specifically, without federal approval states can determine which services can be provided through telehealth (if any), where in the state to use telehealth, which modalities to allow, which providers may deliver services via telehealth, and the rates at which telehealth will be reimbursed. States can also select the Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes and modifiers they will use to identify, track, and reimburse for these services. States can set these policies without specific federal approval, though changes in payment methodologies for telehealth require the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to approve a state plan amendment (CMS 2020a). With federal approval, states can also allow telehealth to replace the face-to-face assessment requirements for home and community-based services (HCBS) specified in Section 1915(i). They can also use telehealth for case management and some personal care services 1915(c) waivers (CMS 2020b). Moreover, states can expand the availability of telehealth providers by using Section 1135 waivers1 to relax licensing laws so that out-of-state providers with equivalent licensing may practice in their state; to date, 50 states have done so (Weigel et al. 2020). In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, Medicaid agencies have used these flexibilities to expand the use of telehealth in unprecedented ways. To learn more about the extent of these changes, the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC) engaged Mathematica to catalog telehealth policies before the COVID-19 pandemic and those in response to it in 50 states, the District of Columbia, and 5 territories. This report summarizes the contents of the catalog, its data sources, and key findings.
- Copyright:
- Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further use of the material is subject to CC BY-NC-ND license. (More information)
- Extent:
- 1 online resource (1 PDF file (iv, 26 pages))
- Illustrations:
- Illustrations
- NLM Unique ID:
- 101775011 (See catalog record)
- Permanent Link:
- http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/101775011