CMS issued an interim final rule on March 30 that provides some clarification for agencies dealing with the public health emergency.
 
A few key points in the rule:
  • CMS acknowledges that telehealth may be used in home health but that telehealth visits are not billable.
  • In certain cases, a patient who is quarantining at home due to COVID-19 is homebound.
  • Hospices can use telehealth in certain cases.
  • Hospice face-to-face encounters can occur by telehealth.
This rule addresses regulatory changes to Medicare and Medicaid intended to help Medicare providers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The rule includes several changes to Medicare’s home health and hospice regulations that providers have been requesting in their 1135 waiver requests. The rule also addresses changes resulting from passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).
 
 
See next week’s issue of HHL for more details.