From September 18-24, 2022, the American Telemedicine Association (ATA) will host its second annual Telehealth Awareness Week to highlight the important role telehealth plays in providing access to safe, quality care to everyone who needs it. Created to reinforce the central role telehealth is playing in our everyday delivery of health care services to patients nationwide, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, this event is a platform for members and partners of the ATA to raise awareness, educate, and support telehealth – because telehealth is health.
Foley & Lardner LLP is proud to support this momentous week of special events, which will include a series of virtual sessions, unique content and white papers, and presentations, to put a spotlight on the value of telehealth in a hybrid care model that includes in-person and virtual care. Foley Partner Nathaniel Lacktman, chair of the firm's national Telemedicine & Digital Health Industry Team, was elected to the ATA Board of Directors earlier this year. We are committed to a future of care delivery that ensures all patients, no matter their location, can access the quality care they deserve.
As the pandemic continues to affect the health care industry, health technology businesses need to prepare for the inevitable transition of care that will come when the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) and associated PHE waivers expire in the first half of 2023. Continuity of care is imperative and companies will need to figure out how to avoid patient abandonment when the waivers end. Stakeholders will need to prepare for the removal of major flexibilities for the use of telehealth, including the waiver of originating site requirements and other barriers to reimbursement for telehealth use and the redetermining of Medicaid eligibility.
The PHE allowed millions of people to access health care services that they might otherwise have had to forego during the pandemic. Virtual care technologies became much more widely available. For example, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services conducted a survey that over 28 million Medicare beneficiaries used telehealth during the first year of the pandemic, and telehealth accounted for 12 percent of all services used by beneficiaries during the first year of the pandemic. With the impending PHE expiration, telehealth services may come at a cost for individuals who may not be able to afford it.
Foley and the ATA, along with patients and providers alike, want to make telehealth a permanent option for care delivery. If you are interested in being a part of the message #TelehealthIsHealth, please review the Interactive Sponsorship opportunities. And dig into the ATA Resource Center for a collection of educational materials contributed by organizations dedicated to supporting broader access to telehealth.
All ATA events this week are free and open to the public, so be sure to also take advantage and register for one of the numerous Telehealth Awareness Week Events.
For the latest news and updates on other ATA hosted events and conferences subscribe to the ATA mailing list. The ATA is the only organization completely focused on advancing telehealth. It represents a broad and inclusive member network of more than 400 organizations working to advance industry adoption of telehealth, promote responsible policy, advocate for government and market normalization, and provide education and resources to help integrate virtual care into emerging value-based delivery models.
We hope you will join us and the ATA in celebrating Telehealth Awareness Week.
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