A recent report by FAIR Health found that telehealth claims rose nearly 3000% in 2020. Notably, the study examined only claims from private insurers, excluding both Medicare and Medicaid. This dramatic increase followed the significant relaxation of telehealth requirements for billing promulgated in many states in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Mental health dominated the reported claims, accounting for 47.22% of all telehealth diagnoses, a diagnosis that did not breach the top five in 2019.

Other notable observations from the report included:

• A significant increase in both rural and urban usage of telehealth.
• A decrease in diagnoses related to influenza and pneumonia.

Later this year, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General is set to release an examination of expanded telehealth services offered by state Medicaid programs, which is expected to offer similar insights.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers has introduced the Protecting Access to Post-COVID–19 Telehealth Act of 2021 in an effort to formalize and build upon the expansion of telehealth for Medicare patients authorized during the pandemic. The legislation seeks to:

• Eliminate most geographic and originating site restrictions on the use of telehealth in Medicare.
• Establish a patient’s home as an eligible originating site.
• Authorize the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service (“CMS”) to continue Public Health Emergency (“PHE”) reimbursement expansion for telehealth for 90 days beyond the eventual end of the PHE.

As patients and providers continue to turn to telehealth delivery models, it is important to ensure compliance with evolving state and federal regulations regarding data privacy, scope of practice and billing requirements. Moreover, the demand and de-stigmatization is driving mental health investment from both the US Department of Agriculture and venture funds.