Avicenna Medical Blog

Care Management Weekly News Update -11/7/17

Posted by DeAnn Dennis on Tue, Nov 07, 2017 @ 03:08 PM

Telehealth Fills Void When Weather Emergencies Disrupt Normal Provider-Patient Experience

In the midst of torrential flooding and winds that destroyed homes and displaced thousands of people along Texas’ Gulf Coast and parts of Florida during Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, telehealth was a lifeline for people needing nonemergency care. Telehealth vendors provided free consultations, monitored patients and refilled prescriptions as governors in Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina declared emergencies that eased restrictions on out-of-state providers.

Urgent Care Clinics Have Taken off in the Past Decade — and Health Care Businesses Acting like Amazon Will Gain an Edge

Any company that can create systemic change to prevent and manage chronic illness through technology or new therapeutic models will win. Companies that use technology to allow chronically ill patients to better manage their condition or enable them have a more fulfilling life will be successful.    

CMS Releases 2018 Physician Fee Schedule

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued a final rule (PDF) on Thursday for the 2018 Physician Fee Schedule, which increases payments by 0.41%. The new rate, CMS said in a fact sheet, reflects the additional 0.50% update established under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015, reduced by 0.09%, due to the misvalued code target recapture amount, required under the Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2014.

Medicare Spends More on Seniors With Highest Needs

Medicare spends roughly three times more on the 13% of beneficiaries who need help with two or more activities of daily living (ADLs) due to physical or cognitive impairments than those that don’t, according to a new study from the Long-Term Quality Alliance (LTQA).

Tags: Weekly Industry News