How to analyze nursing policies on telemedicine essay

How to analyze nursing policies on telemedicine essay

Telemedicine is the use of technology to deliver care at a distance. It has numerous benefits. It has expanded healthcare access, improved healthcare outcomes, and reduced healthcare costs—various state laws in California impact telemedicine in the region. Firstly the California policies require healthcare practitioners to obtain and document written or oral consent before performing any telemedicine practices (CTRC, n.d). This enables the patients to be aware of the services being offered to them. This will prevent reimbursement of costs the patients are not aware of. Secondly, the private payers may reimburse for live videos and the services provided via live videos. As a result, proper documentation is key. The healthcare providers need to document the services provided under which reimbursement can be done.

In California, any in-person contact shall not be required under the Medical program for services appropriately provided through telemedicine. The subject reimbursement policy will apply in this case. In California, policy store and forward is included under the definition of telemedicine, and therefore it is subject to reimbursement. This means that patients can be covered for certain dental and dermatological services.

The telemedicine policy does not allow the healthcare providers to limit the settings where telemedicine services can be provided before the payment is made for the services covered. This policy means that even patient who resides in distant areas can be covered for telemedicine provided without being restricted. As a result, they can comfortably receive healthcare services even in their homes. The home is regarded as an eligible originating site. Finally, California has assigned various codes that should be used during the provision of telemedicine healthcare services. For the interactive audio and video sessions, healthcare providers must put a GT modifier in front of the CPT codes. The coding system allows for reimbursement based on the healthcare services provided to the patients.

References

California Telehealth Resource centre (CTRC) (n.d). https://www.caltrc.org/

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