The U.S. CMS waded into controversy with two final rules calendar year 2022, drawing fire from device makers and doctors who allege that cuts in rates for physicians will hamper beneficiary access. Software developers working in the telehealth space will find much to cheer, however, given that some telehealth services that were covered during the COVID-19 pandemic will be covered after the pandemic has passed.
The impetus to provide more Medicare coverage of telehealth may prove irresistible, but the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has some reservations, including that telehealth payment rates should not favor companies like Dallas-based Teladoc Health Inc. over bricks-and-mortar clinics. This and other considerations are driving the commission toward a recommendation that a two-year telehealth pilot program would be more appropriate than simply jumping into a quickly broadened world of Medicare telehealth coverage.
While telehealth has been gaining traction over the last few years, the COVID-19 pandemic really shined a spotlight on this rapidly rising space. In July, Globaldata predicted that the telehealth industry likely would reach $20 billion by 2024, boosted by a loosening of restrictions. Indeed, an Oct. 30 CDC report highlighted a 154% increase in telehealth visits during the last week of March vs. the same period in 2019. The authors added that policy changes could help boost access to care via telehealth during and after the pandemic.
Following Siemens Healthineers AG’s announcement that it was picking up Varian Medical Systems Inc. for $16.4 billion, another multibillion-dollar deal has emerged. This time, Teladoc Health Inc. and Livongo Health Inc. have inked a definitive merger agreement with a value of $18.5 billion.
The transaction is expected to close by the end of the fourth quarter, subject to shareholder approvals and other customary closing conditions.
Digital health bucked uncertainties around the COVID-19 pandemic, reeling in $6.3 billion in funding in the first half of 2020, according to a new report from Mercom Capital Group. The record-setting, global haul was 24% higher than last year’s first-half raise of $5.1 billion.
The Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) and CMS both posted their final rules for electronic health records (EHRs), and analysts with Cowen Washington Research Group said both rules essentially replicate the draft versions. The provisions dealing with data blocking and interoperability are expected to benefit developers of HER systems in the near term, and telehealth should also benefit, albeit over a longer scale of time.