By Marissa Plescia (MedCityNews.com)
In an issue brief released Monday, the American Medical Association (AMA) urged Congress to make permanent the Medicare telehealth flexibilities introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Before Covid-19, only a select few Medicare beneficiaries could access virtual care. They had to be in a rural setting, not an urban or suburban setting. They also could only use telehealth in an approved originating site, like a hospital or a physician’s office. These restrictions were waived during Covid-19 in order to expand access to care.
These flexibilities have been extended numerous times and are currently set to expire at the end of January. This reliance on temporary extensions has created uncertainty for providers and patients, the AMA argued in the issue brief.
“Since the Covid-19 public health emergency, Congress has repeatedly extended telehealth flexibilities for Medicare patients—often at the last moment—creating uncertainty for millions of patients and their physicians,” said AMA President Dr. Bobby Mukkamala, in a statement. “As the current waiver deadline approaches, Congress must finally act decisively to prevent a disruptive and abrupt halt to the expanded telehealth services that have improved care continuity, chronic disease management, and access for rural and underserved communities.”
The issue brief explains that telehealth use surged during the pandemic, with more than 28 million Medicare beneficiaries using virtual care, and studies show telehealth visits are 9.2 percentage points more likely to be completed than in-person appointments.
In addition, multiple studies, including one from the University of Michigan, found that telehealth does not increase overall utilization and can lower costs, with one study showing $82 lower Medicare spending per patient after a telehealth visit compared with in-person care.
The AMA calls for several congressional actions, including permanently removing restrictions on Medicare coverage of telehealth services so patients can receive telehealth at home regardless of location. The organization also asks to extend the Acute Hospital at Home Care waiver through 2030 and authorize continued use of virtual diabetes prevention programs. It is also pushing lawmakers to address coverage and payment barriers for remote patient monitoring devices to improve maternal and child health outcomes under Medicaid.
“When thoughtfully integrated, particularly through coordinated systems and hybrid care models, telehealth has demonstrated the ability to reduce care fragmentation, improve outcomes, enhance patient engagement and lower costs,” the AMA stated in the issue brief. “Real-world data increasingly supports its role in delivering high-quality, efficient care across populations. Yet many telehealth flexibilities remain tethered to temporary pandemic-era policies. Treating them as stopgap measures rather than foundational tools undermines progress toward a modern, innovative and resilient health system.”
