Access to telehealth has been greatly expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic, and members of the House of Representatives want to keep it that way. I’m Jeff Lagasse with Healthcare Finance News, and we’ll dive into that and more in this week’s Top Stories.
A bipartisan group of U.S. representatives has reintroduced a bill called the Protecting Access to Post-COVID-19 Telehealth Act of 2021, which seeks to safeguard access to virtual care after the pandemic has ended. In HealthcareITNews, we see that (https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/us-lawmakers-reintroduce-house-bill-safeguarding-access-telehealth) the bill seeks to do so in part by eliminating most geographic and originating site restrictions on the use of telehealth in Medicare; and authorizing the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to continue reimbursement for telehealth for 90 days beyond the end of the public health emergency. The earlier version of the bill, which was widely applauded, met with praise from a wide range of industry groups but stalled last year after being referred to committee.
DarioHealth raised eyebrows this week when it announced it’s expanding its digital chronic disease management business beyond diabetes and hypertension by purchasing Upright Technologies, a musculoskeletal health company that specializes in connected posture correction devices and digital coaching. MobiHealthNews reports (https://www.mobihealthnews.com/news/dariohealth-buys-msk-upright-technologies-acquisition-announces-70m-private-placement) that the acquisition is worth around $31 million, mostly in stock, and will likely be finalized on or around February 7. More than 90,000 people are actively using Upright's devices, which are also recommended to musculoskeletal patients by hundreds of clinics worldwide.
Finally this week, the American Hospital Association sent a letter to CMS calling on acting Administrator Elizabeth Richter to withdraw and replace the most favored nation model interim final rule. According to Healthcare Finance News, (https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/aha-condemns-most-favored-nation-model-and-asks-cms-withdraw-it) the rule attempts to lower prescription drug costs by paying no more for Medicare Part B drugs and biologicals than the lowest price the drug manufacturers receive in other, similar countries. While the AHA supports taking actions to stop the rising cost of drugs in the U.S., the hospital advocacy group called the most favored nation model unlawful and said the law puts patients and hospitals at risk.
I’m Jeff Lagasse with Healthcare Finance News, and this has been Top Stories.