How Maine and New Hampshire Passed Laws Mandating Private Insurance Reimbursement for Telemedicine

Both Maine and New Hampshire in the Summer of 2009 passed laws which require insurance companies to pay for services delivered by telemedicine. For the benefit of other states who may ponder such a step, a new article on the TIE by Michael Edwards of the Northeast Telehealth Resource Center shares details about the similarities and differences in the laws and discuss some of what we know about how these laws got through the state legislatures.

New Legislation Would Increase Funding for Telemedicine

Congressmen Mike Thompson, D-California recently introduced telemedicine legislation would provide $30 million in grants to help health facilities pay for telehealth equipment and expand telehealth support services. Currently about 80% of Americans do not have access to telemedicine because of restrictions that limit funding for these types of facilities to rural areas. The Medicare Telehealth Enhancement Act (House Resolution 2068) would expand Medicare reimbursement to urban and suburban areas and include more facilities, the press release states. It will also allow doctors to monitor patients remotely.

Read More....

New Hampshire Senate Passes Telemedicine Reimbursement Bill

Health insurers would no longer be able to require that a doctor meet a patient face-to-face in order to be reimbursed under a bill passed recently by the New Hampshire Senate. Senate Bill 138, which defines telemedicine and requires its coverage, passed the Senate on a 17-5 roll call vote. The measure now goes to the House for approval.

Read More...

Two Telehealth Grant Application Windows Open

Fiscal Year 2009 application window is open for the Rural Development's Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) Grant Program, subject to the availability of funding. The grant may be used to fund telecommunications-enabled information, audio and video equipment and related advanced technologies extend educational and medical applications into rural locations. Grants are made for projects where the benefit is primarily delivered to end users that are not at the same location as the source of the education or health care service. The application deadline is March 24, 2009. More information is here.

Also, HRSA recently released updated information on the Telehealth Network Grant Program (TNGP). The primary objective of the TNGP is to show how telehealth programs and networks improve access to quality healthcare services in underserved rural and urban communities. The funding for the program is $3,430,000 with 14 awards expected. The closing date for applications is March 6, 2009. More information is here.

Telemedicine Program Celebrates Ten Year Mark

The Atlantic Health Sciences Corporation's telehealth program in Canada celebrated 10 years this month. The program has served thousands of patients in and around New Brunswick, and it, and was one of the first recipients of the ATSP Telehealth Awards in 2001.

Two New Telehealth Reports Available

The California Healthcare Foundation recently released two new reports that focus on telehealth. The first, entitled Right Here Right Now: Ten Telehealth Pioneers Make It Work, that describes how ten telehealth innovators are using electronic means to make high-quality health care available remotely. They use an array of communications instruments, from ordinary telephones and televisions to broadband connections and 3G-driven iPhones. It can be downloaded here.

The second report, entitled Delivering Care Anytime, Anywhere: Telehealth Alters the Medical Ecosystem, describe examines emerging uses of telehealth and describes the market drivers and challenges that will impact its future growth. It can be downloaded here.

New Home Telehealth Primer Now Available on TIE

A new Home Telehealth Primer has recently been published on the TIE's article section. The Home Telehealth Primer provides an overview and introduction to the use of telecommunications technology to provide care services to a patient in their home. It includes information on technology, patient assessment, and Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement polices.

The Telemedicine Information Exchange welcomes submissions of original articles on topics appropriate for this website. Possible subjects might include commentary on telemedicine/telehealth issues or policy, reports of current research projects, or new applications of telemedicine/telehealth.

Contributors Sought for Handbook on Knowledge Management in Telemedicine

Writers working in telemedicine and knowledge management as researchers and practitioners are invited to submit book chapters for a handbook be published by IGI Global. The Handbook of Research on Knowledge Management in Telemedicine: Advanced Ethics, Policy and Regulatory Applications will cover a wide range of topics from early adopters of Telemedicine to the latest innovation and futuristic tele-robotic technologies.

The Overall Objectives of the Book:

The book aims to provide relevant theoretical frameworks and latest empirical research findings in the area. It is written for professionals who want to improve their understanding of the global significance of Telemedicine and apply it in their profession. Since Telemedicine is expected to provide a strategic thrust at different levels of the global information and knowledge society and bridge the knowledge gaps in developing nations, the book addresses the all important ethics, policy and regulatory applications in a detailed and comprehensive fashion.

The Target Audience is professionals and researchers working in the field of information and knowledge management in various disciplines, e.g. library, information and communication sciences, administrative sciences and management, education, adult education, sociology, computer science, information technology. Moreover, the book will provide insights and support decision-makers at local, regional, national and international levels to implement Telemedicine initiatives in their country to advance quality of healthcare, medical education and research and elevate the overall health and well-being of society and communities.

Recommended topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

* History And Evolution Of Telemedicine
* Internet, Semantic Web And Telemedicine
* Telecommunications And Telemedicine
* Information Technology And Telemedicine
* Devices, Equipments, Instruments And Accessories And Telemedicine

Medical Applications of Telemedicine:

* Global Ethics And Telemedicine
* Local, National And International Policies In Telemedicine
* Total Quality Management In Telemedicine
* University- Industry Alliance In Telemedicine
* Tele-Robotics- Theory And Applications
* Biomedical Ontology: Theory And Applications
* Data mining Applications For Telemedicine
* Decision Support Systems For Telemedicine

Submission Procedure:

Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit chapters by August 5, 2008 and will be reviewed on a double-blind review basis. The book is scheduled to be published by IGI Global, www.igi-pub.com, publisher of the IGI Publishing (formerly Idea Group Publishing), Information Science Publishing, IRM Press, CyberTech Publishing and Information Science Reference (formerly Idea Group Reference) imprints.

Inquiries and submissions can be forwarded electronically (Word document) or by mail to:

Dr. Jayanth G Paraki
Telemedicine Research Laboratory, India
jparaki @ gmail.com

Or Dr. Lawrence Wasserman USA
Health Knowledge Management Consultant
Fortech1 @ usa.net

(Source: IGI Global Press Release)

New Economic Analysis of Email-Based Telemedicine Available

Email-based telemedicine has been reported to be an efficient method of delivering online health services to patients at a distance and is often described as a low-cost form of telemedicine. A new study by researchers at the Center for Online Health at the University of Queensland, Australia, finds that the service may be low-cost if the healthcare organization utilizes their existing email infrastructure to provide their telemedicine service. When the workload exceeded 5216 email consultations per annum, there were savings made when a purpose-written email application was used.

The full analysis was published by the open access journal BioMed Central and the full report is available for free download [pdf].

(Source: BioMed Central, May 22, 2008)

International Telemedicine Nonprofit Organization to Treat 30,000 Child

The Medical Missions for Children charity (MMC) recently announced that will treat its 30,000th child via telehealth in June. The organization has created what it calls the Global Telemedicine & Teaching Network to enable U.S.-based doctors to consult with foreign pediatric physicians through a distance-medicine network called the Telemedicine Outreach Program so they can help diagnose and treat children worldwide. Technology also has allowed MMC to expand its services to include educational content for health care providers and patients in multiple countries.

Read more here.

Still Time Left to Apply for Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant

The deadline for applying for a 2008 grant for the USDA Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program (DLT) is April 14, 2008. The DLT Grant Program was authorized by the 1990 Farm Bill to provide grants to rural schools and health care providers. The DLT Grant Program is specifically designed to meet the educational and health care needs of rural America through the use of advanced telecommunications technologies. Paper copies of grant application must be postmarked and mailed, shipped or sent overnight no later than April 14, 2008 to be eligible for FY 2008 grant funding. Late or incomplete applications will not be eligible for FY 2008 grant funding. Electronic copies must be received by April 14, 2008 to be eligible for FY 2008 grant funding. More information and the FY 2008 DLT application materials may be obtained from and from the DLT website or by contacting the DLT Program at (202) 720-0413.

Please see the TIE's Telemedicine Funding News Page for the latest news about grants and other funding opportunities.

Telehealth Community Urged to Take Grassroots Action on OAT Funding

Congress is currently in the process of drafting appropriations legislation to provide federal spending for fiscal year (FY) 2009, which will begin on October 1st of this year. Last year, the telehealth community galvanized a strong grassroots advocacy campaign in support of increasing funding for the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth (OAT). Hundreds of individuals and institutions contacted Congress urging that OAT funding be increased. These grassroots efforts resulted in the Senate voting to approve an amendment boosting OAT funding from $6.8 million to $13.8 million. While this increase was unfortunately not retained in compromise negotiations with the House of Representatives, the Senate vote was proof that Congress will act to support telehealth when they hear from constituents in their states and districts. Members of the telehealth community are urged to reach out to Congress and urge that telehealth receive the support it deserves. A $13.8 million budget for OAT will significantly advance telehealth in the United States. If you are willing to have your name added to the list of those supporting an increase in telehealth funding, please send an email to info@telehealthleadership.org including your name, title, organization, and address. This information will be used to add your name to the letter. Please also contact your two senators and urge them to add their names to a joint letter being circulated by Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan and Sen. John Thune of South Dakota urging that telehealth funding in the FY 2009 Labor-HHS bill be raised to $13.8 million. With the telehealth communities grassroots efforts, funding for this critical telehealth agency can be increased. (Source: Bob Waters, Partner and Chair, Telehealth, E-Health Law & Government Relations Groups Drinker, Biddle & Reath, March 21, 2008)

2008 Telemedicine Meeting Schedule

We've recently updated our calendar of telemedicine and telehealth meetings for 2008. If you're hosting an event, or if you know of a meeting that we've missed, please bring it to our attention.

Medicare Reimburses for Neurobehavioral Telehealth Exams

The Centers for Medicare & Medicare Services (CMS) recently announced in that the neurobehavioral status exam (Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code 96116) has been added to the list of Medicare telehealth services. Previously, CMS determined that, if the eligibility criteria, and conditions of payment are satisfied, the use of a telecommunications system may substitute for a face-to-face, "hands on" encounter for consultation, office visits, individual psychotherapy, pharmacologic management, psychiatric diagnostic interview examination, end stage renal disease related services, and individual medical nutrition therapy.

When billing this code as a Medicare telehealth service, you must append modifier GT ("telehealth service via interactive audio-video telecommunication system"), and all other criteria for telehealth reimbursement under Medicare must be met as set forth in the Medicare Benefit Policy Manual (Publication 100-02, Chapter 15, Section 270) and the Medicare Claims Processing Manual (Publication 100-04, Chapter 12, Section 190).

HCPCS code 96116, neurobehavioral status exam, involves clinical assessment of thinking, reasoning and judgment per hour of a psychologist's or physician's time.

New White Paper on Telemedicine Available

First Consulting Group has recently released a new white paper, which we excerpted in our last Telemedicine News Update. The paper, entitled Telemedicine in the Ambulatory Setting: Trends, Opportunites and Challenges, reviews the opportunities for providers in the two main areas of telemedicine: remote consulting and home monitoring and discusses some of the considerations in getting started. You can read the excerpt on the TIE here, or download the complete pdf of the paper from First Consulting Group here.

Rebooting the TIE Blog

Welcome to the new TIE blog! After much consideration, we are re-launching this blog to highlight some of the features and resources that are contained on the Telemedicine Information Exchange but which can be tricky to find. We'll also be answering some of the questions that we get asked on a regular basis. We also hope to highlight some of the current events going on in the world of telemedicine and in the offices of the ATSP. So please check back often and let us know if there is any particular topic you'd like us to address.