Use of Telehealth in Delivery of Home Health Services

110 - Use of Telehealth in Delivery of Home Health Services (Rev. 10438, Issued: 11-06-20, Effective: 03-01-20, Implementation: 01- 11-21) Section 1895(e) governs the home health prospective payment system (PPS) and provides that telehealth services are outside the scope of the Medicare home health benefit and home health PPS. This provision does not provide coverage or payment for Medicare home health services provided via a telecommunications system. The law does not permit the substitution or use of a telecommunications system to provide any covered home health services paid under the home health PPS, or any covered home health service paid outside of the home health PPS. As stated in 42 CFR 409.48(c), a visit is an episode of personal contact with the beneficiary by staff of the home health agency (HHA), or others under arrangements with the HHA for the purposes of providing a covered service. The provision clarifies that there is nothing to preclude an HHA from adopting telemedicine or other technologies that they believe promote efficiencies, but there is no separate reimbursement for those technologies under the Medicare home health benefit. However, Medicare does recognize services furnished via telecommunications technology (see section 80.10) as an allowed administrative cost on Medicare cost reports if telecommunications technology is used by the HHA to augment the care planning process, and the technology is indicated on the plan of care. This provision does not waive the current statutory requirement for a physician or allowed practitioner certification of a home health plan of care under current §§1814(a)(2)(C) or 1835(a)(2)(A) of the Act.