Starting this year, Medicare Advantage beneficiaries are able to access additional telehealth benefits not offered under Medicare Fee-for-Service, giving patients the option to receive health care services from more convenient locations, like their homes, rather than requiring them to go to a health care facility.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule and the Advance Notice Part II to further advance the agency’s efforts to strengthen and modernize the Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug programs.

CMS is proposing to build on the current benefits and give Medicare Advantage plans more flexibility to count telehealth providers in certain specialty areas like psychiatry, neurology, or cardiology towards network adequacy standards, which would encourage greater use of telehealth services as well as increase plan choices for beneficiaries.

These proposed changes aim to give seniors more plan choices in rural areas, increase competition between plans, and allow providers to take advantage of the latest healthcare technologies and innovations.

Starting this year, Medicare Advantage beneficiaries are able to access additional telehealth benefits not offered under Medicare Fee-for-Service, giving patients the option to receive health care services from more convenient locations, like their homes, rather than requiring them to go to a health care facility.

CMS is proposing to build on the current benefits and give Medicare Advantage plans more flexibility to count telehealth providers in certain specialty areas like psychiatry, neurology, or cardiology towards network adequacy standards, which would encourage greater use of telehealth services as well as increase plan choices for beneficiaries. These proposed changes aim to give seniors more plan choices in rural areas, increase competition between plans, and allow providers to take advantage of the latest healthcare technologies and innovations.

Over the past several years, Medicare has begun to cover more telehealth services through changes to chronic care policies. See the list of the telehealth services that are covered specifically under Medicare chronic conditions.


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