New York State is taken into account an early adopter and chief in increasing entry to telehealth companies. A report ready by Manatt Well being for the New York Well being Basis presents a coverage roadmap to boost and maintain telehealth companies throughout the state.
The report, “Making certain Lengthy-Time period Equitable Entry to Telehealth in New York State: Alternatives and Challenges,” pointed to latest telehealth coverage shifts which have facilitated the launch or enlargement of modern telehealth packages in New York, together with Finger Lakes Neighborhood Well being’s pediatric teledentistry program, the College of Rochester Medical Middle’s pilot program to supply telehealth consultations in non-traditional settings, and New York Well being and Hospitals’ Digital ExpressCare service platform that provides sufferers speedy, accessible medical and behavioral healthcare.
The Manatt authors state that though New York has largely maintained Public Well being Emergency-era telehealth insurance policies and stored tempo with nearly all of states, alternatives stay for the state to enshrine and strengthen these insurance policies. The report makes 4 key suggestions:
• Everlasting Cost Parity: Establishing everlasting fee parity for digital visits throughout all payers to make sure accessibility and encourage supplier funding. The state has expanded parity by April 1, 2026. The extension helps ongoing provision of telehealth companies in New York and permits the state to proceed to check the influence of telehealth service supply, “however suppliers could require additional readability from the state to make extra investments in care fashions that function telehealth,” the report says.
• Implement Cost Parity for Audio-Solely Visits Throughout All Payers, adopting Medicaid-specific necessities governing use of the modality. (This is able to guarantee entry to look after low-income populations that won’t have entry to video capabilities or out there suppliers of their space, the report says.)
• Equitable Reimbursement for Federally Certified Well being Facilities (FQHCs): Reimbursing FQHCs at full charges for distant visits to help affected person entry and supplier retention. The report notes that among the many 27 states that explicitly point out that FQHCs could invoice the PPS price for telehealth companies, New York is exclusive in lowering Article 28 FQHCs’ reimbursement relying on the placement of the affected person and supplier. In apply, a decrease reimbursement price could power FQHCs to discontinue telehealth service supply or preserve it with vital income loss in an already strained system.
• Cross-State Licensure: Implementing a New York State-specific method to cross-state licensure to deal with supplier shortages and preserve continuity of care. New York may comply with the method of a number of states which have established a state-specific, special-purpose telehealth registry to allow a broad group of suppliers to acquire a license to ship telehealth companies to in-state residents.
