Telehealth: A Lifesaver During Pandemic Yet Facing Uncertain Future in US
TL/DR –
Telehealth services have increased from 15% to 85% within two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, former President Trump increased accessibility to telehealth services, and the expansions were extended by President Joe Biden and Congress until September 2021. However, without permanent legislation, medical professionals cannot make necessary investments in telehealth infrastructure and services.
Telehealth Services amid Pandemic: A Lifeline for Millions
Stephanie Hendrick, a retired teacher from Roanoke, Virginia, is one among the 110 million Americans who contracted COVID-19 since 2020. However, her battle continued post-recovery, with crippling long COVID symptoms. Amid pandemic restrictions, she found solace in telehealth services offered by MedStar Health, a nearby healthcare provider. She avers, “For me, if it hadn’t been for that, I wouldn’t have gotten care.”
Millions of Americans share Hendrick’s experience, resorting to online medical consultations amid the pandemic. A report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals more than 85% of physicians utilized telehealth services in 2021, a significant leap from 15% in the pre-pandemic era.
An executive order signed by former President Donald Trump in August 2020 expanded telehealth accessibility for Americans, including the 68 million Medicare beneficiaries. However, the telehealth expansion expires soon, and without permanent legislation, it impedes the necessary investment in IT and other infrastructure.
The temporary telehealth access rules and funding, extended until September 30, 2022, need to be permanently enshrined into federal law to ensure uninterrupted medical services. Despite the drop in telehealth usage by Medicare recipients post-2020, it remains double the pre-pandemic rate, according to data from the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Despite introducing more than a dozen bills to expand telehealth services, most have not seen progress through Congress. Senator Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, introduced the CONNECT for Health Act, aimed at making many of these temporary provisions permanent. The bill, filed multiple times since 2019 without success, promises to broaden the scope of medical professionals providing telehealth services and remove geographic limitations.
Dr. Ethan Booker, MedStar Health’s chief medical officer for telehealth, believes the future of telehealth depends on Congress passing supportive laws. He states, “I know we can deliver outstanding care. Permanence and more certainty around the regulatory environment will allow us to do much more effective cost-effectiveness research.”
Telehealth services, now a norm for many, must continue beyond the September deadline, either by passing the law or approving further extensions. Senator Mark Warner, D-Va., a sponsor of the CONNECT for Health Act, urges for the bill to pass “without delay.” However, the bill remains stagnant post-referral to the Senate Finance Committee in April.
Hendrick, with a family deeply connected to the medical community, asserts, “It shouldn’t be that if you can’t get to a doctor’s office for whatever reason, you don’t get medical care. There should be a way for all of us to be able to look at a physician or a nurse face-to-face [on a screen] and be able to say, ‘Here’s what’s going on,’ and them to be able to say, ‘I can help you.’”
—
Read More Health & Wellness News ; US News