2016: The Year of Telehealth Reimbursement

2015 was a banner year for telehealth and telemedicine. According to the Home Care Technology Report, 200 telemedicine laws were introduced across 42 state legislatures in 2015.

According to the American Telehealth Association (ATA), “Telehealth is a rapidly growing field that has the potential to help states leverage a shrinking and maldistributed provider workforce, increase access to services, improve population health and lower costs.” This is not expected to slow down in 2016.

Governments are learning what home care providers have known for some time now: technology is transforming the way care is delivered.

There is a growing demand for convenience and innovation as the industry shifts to value-based care, which has resulted in the increase of telehealth technology adoption.

According to research by the ATA, telemedicine is proven to reduce costs for patients, providers, and payers, specifically by reducing hospital visits and readmissions.

It is expected that the global market for telemedicine will grow at an annual rate of 14.3%, reaching $36.2 billion by 2020.

The most common obstacle home care providers face when considering telehealth implementation is the lack of reimbursement and payment opportunities. But according to Foley, both private and government payers are beginning to realize the substantial benefits telehealth solutions offer, and are planning to increase coverage throughout 2016:

“Both private and government payers will continue to expand telemedicine coverage as consumers gain experience with the technology and increasingly demand access to telemedicine-based services. Some health plans have already begun bolstering their coverage of telemedicine, which they view as a form of value-based care that can improve the patient experience and offer substantial cost savings.

On the government side, 2016 will particularly see more coverage among Medicaid managed care organizations and Medicare Advantage plans.”{{cta(‘e824c05d-ff88-4c4c-99db-5e8f74e2f39b’)}}

With reimbursement opportunities on the rise, home care providers who consider making enhancements to their current software to include telehealth solutions will not only be opening the door to improved patient experiences, but they could see immediate cost savings and growing opportunities for revenue generation.

This is especially true when purchasing a telehealth solution with an already integrated clinical solution. Expanding reimbursement and payment opportunities is only one amongst five telemedicine trends driving health care transformation in 2016 and beyond. You can read the rest here.

AlayaCare is a leading provider of an end-to-end home care software platform that seamlessly integrates with our innovative telehealth technologies. Should you qualify for telehealth reimbursement, check out our solution in a personal demo today, and see how our technologies can improve patient outcomes.

Sources:

Foley & Lardner LLP: https://www.foley.com/five-telemedicine-trends-transforming-health-care-in-2016/

Rowan Consulting Associates: http://homecaretechreport.com