The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is proposing to implement several sections of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, including expanding telehealth benefits under Medicare Advantage plans.
In a recent proposed 362-page rule that updates Medicare Advantage (MA or Part C) and the Medicare prescription drug benefit program (Part D), CMS is suggesting to implement a section of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 that enables MA plans to offer “additional telehealth benefits” not otherwise available in original Medicare to enrollees starting in plan year 2020 as part of the government-funded “basic benefits.”
Under this specific proposal, MA plans will have broader flexibility than is currently available in how they pay for coverage of telehealth benefits to meet the needs of their enrollees, CMS stated. “In addition, we solicit comment on how to implement the statutory provision that if an MA plan covers a Part B service as an additional telehealth benefit, then the MA plan must also provide the enrollee access to such service through an in-person visit,” the proposal read.
The proposal went on to note that the original Medicare telehealth benefit “is narrowly defined and includes restrictions on where beneficiaries receiving care via telehealth can be located.” As such, CMS believes that the additional telehealth benefits in MA will increase access to patient-centered care by giving enrollees more control to determine when, where, and how they access benefits.
The proposed rule, according to CMS, would also give MA plans more flexibility to offer telehealth benefits to all their enrollees, whether they live in rural or urban areas. “It would also allow greater ability for Medicare Advantage enrollees to receive telehealth from places including their homes, rather than requiring them to go to a healthcare facility to receive telehealth services. Plans would also have greater flexibility to offer clinically-appropriate telehealth benefits that are not otherwise available to Medicare beneficiaries,” CMS stated.
As such, the federal agency stated that although MA plans have always been able to offer more telehealth services than are currently payable under original Medicare through supplemental benefits, this change in how such additional telehealth benefits are financed makes it more likely that MA plans will offer them and that more enrollees will be able to use the benefits.
The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 was signed into law earlier this year, and includes major telehealth advances. Now, CMS believes that this latest proposal will promote “flexibility and innovation so that MA and Part D sponsors are empowered with the tools to improve quality of care and provide more plan choices for MA and Part D enrollees.”
CMS Administrator Seema Verma said in a statement accompanying the proposed rule, “President Trump is committed to strengthening Medicare, and an increasing number of seniors are voting with their feet and choosing to receive their Medicare benefits through private plans in Medicare Advantage. Today’s proposed changes would give Medicare Advantage plans more flexibility to innovate in response to patients’ needs. She added, “I am especially excited about proposed changes to allow additional telehealth benefits, which will promote access to care in a more convenient and cost-effective manner for patients.”
The agency believes that if finalized, the proposed changes would result in an estimated $4.5 billion savings to the Medicare Trust Funds over 10 years, largely arising from recovery of overpayments to MA plans.
