St. Elizabeth Halts New Medicare Telehealth Appointments Due to Waiver Expiration
St. Elizabeth Regional Diabetes Center in Kentucky has temporarily halted new telehealth appointments for Medicare patients due to the expiration of pandemic-era waivers. The American Telemedicine Association's advocacy arm, ATA Action, has urged Congress to reinstate these flexibilities. Patients are advised to contact their doctor's office to arrange in-person appointments.
The center has posted notices warning patients about the inability to schedule new news appointments for Medicare and Medicaid patients. Hospitals and health systems across the country are informing Medicare patients of the same issue, citing the federal government shutdown. Patients with existing telehealth appointments will not be affected, but new appointments cannot be scheduled until further notice.
St. Elizabeth Healthcare is actively working to reschedule affected patients for in-person visits and is informing them about potential billing issues due to the government shutdown. Medicare's pandemic-era telehealth waivers, which allowed non-behavioral/mental health care at home, expired on October 1. The Department of Health and Human Services has blamed Senate Democrats for the government shutdown, which has led to the suspension of these services.
St. Elizabeth Regional Diabetes Center has paused new telehealth appointments for Medicare patients due to the expiration of pandemic-era waivers. Patients are advised to contact their doctor's office to arrange in-person appointments. The center is working to reschedule affected patients and inform them about potential billing issues. The federal government shutdown, blamed on Senate Democrats by the Department of Health and Human Services, has led to the suspension of these services.
