Editor’s Note A new research study, titled “Comparison of Quality Performance Measures for Patients Receiving In-Person vs Telemedicine Primary Care in a Large Integrated Health System” and published by JAMA Network on September 26, showed that telehealth performed better than in-person services in 11 out of 16 measurements for care,…
Editor's Note The Joint Commission on August 31 announced a new patient safety campaign to help patients understand telehealth visits, titled: “Speak Up At Your Telehealth Visit.” Educational resources for the Speak Up program include: an infographic poster/flyer an animated video a distribution guide on how to provide the materials…
Editor's Note A female patient in Chicago, Illinois, filed a lawsuit on July 7 against the multinational UnitedHealth Group for alleged underpayment of telehealth services, Becker’s Payer Issues July 8 reports. The lawsuit claims that the woman’s insurance plan covers telehealth services, including pay benefits for-out-network services. After receiving out-of-network…
Editor's Note On June 13, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued new guidance for HIPPA-covered healthcare providers and health plans to comply with privacy, security, and breach notification requirements when using remote communication technologies to provide “audio-only” telehealth services, the American Hospital…
Editor's Note This study from the Hospital for Special Surgery, New York City, finds that halting in-person office visits and physical therapy (PT) after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) because of COVID-19 did not affect complication rates or outcomes. A total of 624 study patients who had a TKA between January…
Editor's Note Some hospitals and health systems are scaling up their telehealth initiatives and have established venture funds to invest in digital health innovations. Four health system executives with venture funds spoke to Becker’s Hospital Review May 24 about what “criteria they look for” and/or consider before investing in digital…
Editor's Note In a survey of 100 health system executives conducted by Sage Growth Partners in February 2022 and published in Panda Health’s Hospital Digital Health Technology Report: 2022, more than 90% of the health systems surveyed said “a strong digital health strategy is essential to improving clinical outcomes, boosting…