decisionhealth Newsletters, Part B News - 2020 Issue 4 (April)
Telehealth by phone? Maybe, but use the right codes
Subscribe or sign in to view the full article.
Article Overview
This article explains evolving CMS guidance affecting telehealth during the COVID-19 emergency, with a focus on how clinicians and coders should think about encounters that begin with audio-video technology and may continue by phone. It is aimed at coders, billing staff, and clinicians who need to understand the general policy landscape, the distinction between telehealth and telephone-based services, and the kinds of CMS and HHS guidance being referenced. The discussion centers on regulatory flexibility, documentation awareness, and the types of services and code families implicated by these changes.
Why This Topic Matters
Telehealth policies changed rapidly during the COVID-19 emergency, and the article helps readers recognize when an encounter may fit telehealth guidance versus a telephone-based service category. That distinction affects billing, documentation, and compliance decisions for practices trying to code remote patient encounters appropriately.
What You Will Learn
- How CMS telehealth flexibilities changed during the COVID-19 emergency
- Why audio-video and telephone-only encounters are treated differently in guidance
- What types of federal guidance and temporary policy changes are relevant to remote visits
- How documentation considerations may arise when a remote encounter changes format
- Which general code families are associated with telephone and telehealth services
Who Should Read This
- Medical coders
- Billing staff
- Physicians
- Clinicians
- Compliance staff
Codes Discussed
Code Ranges Discussed
Subscribe or sign in to view the full article.
Quick, Current, Complete - www.findacode.com