President Trump signed an Executive Order that outlined measures for Medicare reform specifically telehealth for seniors through network adequacy in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Within one year, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has to propose regulations that adjust the network adequacy requirements for MA plans with regards to access to telehealth services.
Under the “Protecting and Improving Medicare for our Nation’s Seniors” order, MA plans will be able to extend telehealth technologies by streamlining approval of new advances in telehealth services and breakthrough medical devices.
Also, senior citizens will have the ability to directly benefit from any cost savings that MA plans generate like monetary rebates.
Telehealth is particularly beneficial for aging Americans. Most Medicare - age patients have chronic clinical needs so they require frequent visits with their physicians, endocrinologist, geriatrician, etc. Many Medicare patients face mobility issues, which lead to missed appointments or patients not seeking care they need. Telehealth addresses these challenges head on by connecting with patients where they are, in real-time. Telehealth provides care in virtual settings and physicians also consider telehealth as a way to democratize access to quality care, removing geographical boundaries.
Research reveals that patient demand for telehealth services continues to rise along with physicians’ increasing interest in telehealth practices. JAMA recently published a report on the rising number of telemedicine visits, stating that patient visits grew 261 percent between 2015 and 2017.
This kind of growth in patient demand correlates with physicians’ interest in practicing telemedicine. Number of physicians have self-reported telemedicine as a skill doubling- increasing 20 percent per year in just three years (2015- 2018). Hospitals are also adopting the technology to offer telemedicine services. The American Medical Association reports that over 15 percent of physicians work in practices that use telemedicine.