Public Policy

ATA Federal Policy Priorities

National health insurance reform, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Public Law 111-148

ATA’s Federal Policy Priorities for 2010
 

Pending Telemedicine Bills in Congress

Policy Updates

  • Baucus, Grassley Release Policy Options For Transforming The Health Care Delivery System (28 April 2009) - Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) and Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R-IA) released policy options for reducing costs and improving quality in the health care delivery system. The options are the first of three papers that Members will discuss before a Finance Committee mark-up of comprehensive health reform legislation in June. Public comments are due May 15. Click here to view ATA's Comments.
  • ATA’s Recommendations for Implementation of Stimulus Package (27 January 2009) - The American Telemedicine Association issued a set of specific recommendations for implementing federal stimulus funds identified in the proposed American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. In its recommendations, ATA pointed out that federal spending for telemedicine allocated through the supplemental bill can be spent quickly and the resulting benefits, including increased investments, expanded access to healthcare, improved quality and reduced cost of overall health expenditures, can start to be realized within one year. ATA is asking Congress and the Administration to direct funds already contained in the proposed spending measure in seven specific areas: improving Telemedicine Infrastructure, expanding Telecommunications and Broadband Infrastructure, coordination of Federal Telemedicine and Telecommunication Spending, Expanding U.S. Exports of Health Services, Using Telemedicine for Disaster Response, Development of Guidelines and Standards and, integrating Telemedicine in Federally Managed Health Programs. The stimulus bill does not address several important issues for telemedicine such as Medicare reimbursement and the FCC Rural Health Program. These issues will be addressed in discussions of healthcare reform and telecommunications reform which will take place later this year.
  • ATA Submits Request for Additional Medicare Reimbursement (December 2008) - ATA has formally requested several CPT codes to be added to the list of medical services that can receive reimbursement under Medicare. The request, submitted to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), asked for approval of codes related to providing services to patients residing in skilled nursing facilities. The agency will consider the request and include their response in their annual physician fee schedule announcement in late summer of this year.
  • CMS Final Rule Released (3 November 2008) - The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Management (CMS) just released its final rule under the annual physician fee schedule policies for 2009. In the rule, CMS largely affirmed decisions described in the preliminary announcement earlier this year. However, in response to a request and inquiry from ATA, the agency announced that it will start reimbursing approved telehealth services for skilled nursing facilities starting in 2009. Further, although no immediate approval was given, CMS agreed to evaluate the use of a number of additional codes related to skilled nursing facilities in its review for 2010. ATA outlined these codes in our request as: initial nursing facility care (as described by HCPCS codes 99304 through 99306); subsequent nursing facility care (HCPCS codes 99307 through 99310); nursing facility discharge services (HCPCS codes 99315 and 99316); and other nursing facility services (as described by HCPCS code 99318). A pdf file of the final rule is available here.
  • Final Victory for Telemedicine Reimbursement (16 July 2008) - Telemedicine achieved final victory in its quest to add new originating sites for Medicare reimbursement on July 16 when Congress overrode President Bush’s veto of H.R. 6331. Under this new law, as of January 1, 2009, skilled nursing facilities, in-hospital dialysis centers and community mental health centers will be originating sites for Medicare reimbursement. Read More >>
  • Emergency Communications Report Released (February 2008) - A federal government report, just released by Congress, makes a series of recommendations about improving communications between emergency responders and health facilities. Included in the recommendations are a number of suggestions for the increased use of telemedicine and improved linkages between public health, medicine and emergency responders. The report was prepared by a bipartisan Joint Advisory Committee, established by Congress as a result of the 9-11 Commission. It was delivered last week to leaders of the House and Senate for their consideration. ATA Executive Director Jonathan Linkous served as chair of the Public Health Group within the Committee. Several other ATA members also served on the Committee.  A news release from the House Commerce Committee is available here; the full report is available here.
  • FCC Approves ATA's Request to Extend "Grandfathered" Sites (February 2008) - The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved a petition filed by the American Telemedicine Association and have agreed to extend, for three years, eligibility for certain health care providers receiving financial support under the Rural Health Program who lost their eligibility when the FCC changed its definition of “rural.” (Details of the order are available here.)  ATA filed a "Petition for Reconsideration" in March 2005, right after the FCC changed its definition of rural. The changed definition resulted in approximately 200 sites losing their eligibility under the program. ATA asked for a permanent exemption for the sites.
  • Telemedicine Patent Issue Update - ATA Calls for Telemedicine Patent to be Re-Examined (February 2008) - ATA sent a letter to the U.S. Patent Office regarding the controversy stemming from the issuance of a patent on a hub and spoke telemedicine method. In the letter, ATA Executive Director Jonathan D. Linkous says ATA believes the patent has been issued in error and calls on the Patent Office to re-examine the patent in light of the many examples of telemedicine networks in operation prior to the date of the patent. The Canadian Intellectual Property Office decided in February to pull its issuance of a similar patent in Canada and is re-examining the issue. Linkous says that ATA was stunned the patent was issued and expresses concern that the patent may have a chilling effect on the practice of telemedicine.

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