Telehealth

2023 Updates

Support the Medicare Home Health Accessibility Act

Support the Medicare Home Health Accessibility Act

--Omnibus 2023 Waiver ExtensionTelehealth Waivers to Dec. 31, 2024: Allows OTs/OTAs/Therapists to continue as Medicare telehealth providers during this time.

Legislation…Reintroduction Pending

--Expanded Telehealth Access Act (H.R.2168 in 2021/22), Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-NJ

  1. Rep. David McKinley, R-WV

  2. 71 Co-Sponsors

  3. Would add OTs/OTAs/therapists to list of Medicare telehealth providers on a permanent basis

--Expanded Telehealth Access Act (S3193, Identical to HR2168 in 2021/22), Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT)

  1. Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN)

  2. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS)

  3. Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV)

  4. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME)

  5. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)

  6. Sen. John Boozman (R-AR)

--Telehealth Modernization ActS.368/H.R.1332 in 2021/22

  1. Comprehensive legislation

  2. Likely Reintroduction with minimal change later this year

  3. Would give CMS the authority to allow OTs/therapists to provide services via telehealth in Medicare.

--2022 Omnibus reduced the size of the pending cuts.

  • Without Congressional action –Medicare outpatient cuts would have been 15.25% over the years 2021, 2022, and 2023.

  • With Congressional action, thanks to advocacy, the total cuts were 6.25% over these three years.

2022 Updates

Telehealth Update: The House of Representatives passed H.R. 4040, Advancing Telehealth Beyond Covid Act, which would extend Medicare waivers for telehealth services through 2024. Further action is required from the Senate for the law to go into effect. This would allow beneficiaries to continue to receive telehealth services at any site, including in their home, and includes the delivery of occupational therapy services.

Did you know that the Senate introduced its version of the Expanded Telehealth Access Act–S.3193, which would permanently add OT, PT, SLP and audiology as telehealth providers under Medicare?

 

July 2020 Telehealth Updates

Dear Dr. Miner,

Attached to this email is a letter from the American Occupational Therapy Association regarding Utah’s telehealth policies for Medicaid.   AOTA appreciates the flexibilities Utah has granted during the COVID-19 public health emergency and urges you to permanently implement policies that allow for reimbursement of telehealth services furnished by occupational therapy practitioners to allow your beneficiaries to receive these services within their home via telehealth.

I have also attached supporting documentation relative to occupational therapy and telehealth for your review.

Please let me know if you have any questions regarding the letter or enclosures.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Best,

Julie Lenhardt
Manager, Reimbursement and Regulatory Policy
American Occupational Therapy Association

Attachments:
AOTA Ethics Advisory_Telehealth
AOTA Occupational Therapy Telehealth Decision Guide
AOTA Position Paper_Telehealth in OT
AOTA letter to Utah telehealth flexibilities

 

May 2020 Telehealth Updates

Thanks to sustained AOTA advocacy efforts, Medicare will now expand the 1135 waiver to reimburse occupational therapists for services provided to Medicare beneficiaries during the COVID-19 crisis.

Happy OT Month! UOTA is working hard on your behalf. Here are some updates and important information affecting occupational therapists in Utah.

Urge Congress to Reimburse OT Services via Telehealth

All you need to do is input your zip code and sign your name to send it to your representatives in Congress. It will only take less than 3 minutes. Access to telehealth services through Medicare would enable OTs and other providers to reduce the risk of spreading infection to their patients, who are often highly vulnerable to this virus.

http://www.cqrcengage.com/aota/app/onestep-write-a-letter?0&engagementId=506864

Telehealth Services

  • 3/31/2020: AOTA’s initial interpretation of CMS’s Interim Final Rule (IFR) to open up regulatory barriers across health care settings to respond to the COVID-19 crisis is that OT, PT and SLPs cannot bill for telehealth services, even though a group of therapy CPT codes we use were added to the list of telehealth services, including OT evaluation codes. AOTA is advocating strenuously with APTA and ASHA to have therapy practitioners added to the telehealth eligible provider list, with the belief that that the CARES Act gives CMS the authority to add practitioners. A full analysis is in development based on the CMS Press release and IFR.
  • March 26, 2020: UnitedHealthcare will reimburse physical, occupational and speech therapy telehealth services provided by qualified health care professionals when rendered using interactive audio/video technology. State laws and regulations apply. Benefits will be processed in accordance with the member’s plan.This change is effective immediately for dates of service March 18 through June 18, 2020. Reimbursable codes are limited to the specific set of physical, occupational and speech therapy codes listed. UnitedHealthcare will reimburse eligible codes when submitted with a place of service code 02 and modifier 95. 

Initial OT Compact Legislation Drafted

On February 25 and 26, 2020, the Council of State Governments (CSG) convened the Occupational Therapy Drafting Team in Washington, DC. The Drafting Team is expected to complete a draft compact this spring, which will be reviewed by the Occupational Therapy Advisory Group for comment. From there the draft will be distributed to stakeholders for comment in the summer of 2020.

The goal is to work with stakeholders to come to a consensus and finalize the occupational therapy compact legislation by early fall 2020. The process will then include efforts to work with state occupational therapy associations and state regulatory boards/agencies to introduce the licensure compact legislation in multiple states during the 2021 state legislative sessions.

AOTA Updates

Resources from AOTA:

  • The Council of State Governments (CSG) has also compiled state-by-state resources such as executive orders, legislative sessions by state, state COVID-19 websites and resources, other mandates, etc: https://web.csg.org/covid19/