Administration Issues Second Round of Sweeping Changes to Support U.S. Healthcare System During COVID-19 Pandemic
Posted on: 5/1/2020
On Thursday, April 30, the Trump Administration issued another round of sweeping changes to support the U.S. healthcare system during the COVID-19 pandemic. Several of these changes impact our ACMA members, their organizations, and the patients and families they serve. Some highlights are below. Visit the CMS Waivers Website >>> for a complete list of waivers. If you have questions on a topic or are confused about the implementation of these changes, utilize the learning link and lean on our network of 9,000 health care professionals. We learn together!
Increased Hospital Capacity – CMS Hospitals Without Walls
Under the Hospitals Without Walls initiative. CMS has taken multiple steps to allow hospitals to provide services in other healthcare facilities and sites that are not part of the existing hospital, and to set up temporary expansion sites to help address patient needs. Previously, hospitals were required to provide services within their existing departments.
This includes flexibilities to increase beds without facing reduced payments for indirect medical education, allowing inpatient psychiatric and rehabilitation facilities to admit more patients, excepting certain requirements to enable inpatient rehab facilities to accept patients from acute-care hospitals experience a surge, highlight flexibilities that allow payment for outpatient hospital services, allowing provider-based hospital outpatient departments that relocate off-campus to obtain a temporary exception and continue to be paid under OPPS and allowing long-term acute-care hospitals to accept any acute-care hospital patients and be paid at a higher Medicare payment rate as mandated by the CARES Act.
Healthcare Workforce Augmentation
To bolster the U.S. healthcare workforce amid the pandemic, CMS continues to remove barriers for hiring and retaining physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals to keep staffing levels high at hospitals, health clinics, and other facilities. CMS also is cutting red tape so that health professionals can concentrate on the highest-level work they’re licensed for.
This allows nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, and physician assistants to now provide home health services as mandated by the CARES Act. CMS is also temporarily allowing Community Mental Health Centers to offer partial hospitalization and other mental health services to clients in the safety of their homes. CMS will not enforce certain clinical criteria in local coverage determinations that limit access to therapeutic glucose monitors for beneficiaries with diabetes.
Further Expanded Telehealth in Medicare
CMS directed a historic expansion of telehealth services so health care providers can deliver a wider range of care to Medicare beneficiaries in their homes. Beneficiaries thus don’t have to travel to a healthcare facility and risk exposure to COVID-19.
For the duration of the COVID-19 emergency, CMS is waiving limitations on the types of clinical practitioners that furnish telehealth services including physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech-language pathologists.
Hospitals may bill as the originating site for telehealth services furnished by hospital-based practitioners to Medicare patients registered as hospital outpatients. CMS previously announced that Medicare would pay for certain services conducted by audio-only telephone between beneficiaries and their doctors and other clinicians. Now, CMS is broadening that list to include many behavioral health and patient education services. CMS is also increasing payments for these telephone visits to match payments for similar office and outpatient visits.
As mandated by the CARES Act, CMS is paying for Medicare telehealth services provided by rural health clinics and federally qualified health clinics. Previously, these clinics could not be paid to provide telehealth expertise as “distant sites.” Now, Medicare beneficiaries located in rural and other medically underserved areas will have more options to access care from their home without having to travel.
Since some Medicare beneficiaries don’t have access to interactive audio-video technology that is required for Medicare telehealth services or choose not to use it even if offered by their practitioner, CMS is waiving the video requirement for certain telephone evaluation and management services, and adding them to the list of Medicare telehealth services. As a result, Medicare beneficiaries will be able to use an audio-only telephone to get these services.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and our ACMA advocacy firm Lobbyit contributed to this information.
Read the complete list of COVID-19 Blanket Waivers >>>
Read the CMS Hospital Flexibilities >>>
Read the Press Release >>>
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