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Press Release
June 28, 2007
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SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE CALLS ON CMS TO PROMOTE TELEHEALTH THROUGH “CONSISTENT, COMPREHENSIVE REIMBURSEMENT POLICIES”
Washington, DC – The Senate Appropriations Committee recently issued a report that said that reimbursement policies are one of the “most serious obstacles” for the promotion of telehealth. The Committee urged the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to meet with telehealth specialists to come up with recommendations that would promote national standards for telehealth reimbursement in order to advance and encourage the use of telehealth.
Labor-HHS Committee Report on Appropriation Bill, 2008 (S. 1710)
. . . the Committee has observed that one of the most serious obstacles to the integration of telemedicine into health practices is the absence of consistent, comprehensive reimbursement policies. Medicare authorizes only partial reimbursement. Medicaid policies set at state levels vary widely and are inconsistent from State to State. . . .
The Committee urges CMS this year to provide it with a comprehensive survey on a State-by-State basis of telehealth services provided under Medicaid. It further requests that CMS meet with an appropriate array of telehealth specialists including those who have been involved in the demonstration projects supported by this Committee to survey and assess best practices and professional criteria standards and make recommendations to the Committee concerning national standards for telehealth reimbursement which advances and encourages this technology.
“The telehealth community has consistently urged CMS to focus on telehealth policy,” said Robert J. Waters, Counsel for the Center for Telehealth & E-Health Law. “The support of the Appropriations Committee sends another signal that this area should be a priority. Telehealth provides health care to those who need it most – the underserved.”
ABOUT CTeL. The Center for Telehealth & E-Health Law, formerly the Center for Telemedicine Law is a proven leader in providing education and analysis on telehealth, e-health, and emerging technologies. CTeL's mission is to overcome the legal and regulatory barriers to the utilization of telehealth and related e-health services.
