In the era of COVID-19, it has become increasingly important to use different methods of clinical service provision to protect our patients’ health while still addressing their hearing, tinnitus, and vestibular health-care needs.
As audiology clinics increase their use of telehealth as a method for patient care, audiologists must understand how such changes also impact coding and billing. This article will discuss considerations and provide examples of billing and coding for telehealth services for audiologists.
Topic(s): Coding, reimbursment, Telehealth, tele-audiology, telemedicine
On Friday, March 20, 2020, the entire group of audiologists I work with at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) was taking care of patients in person. Three days later, Monday, March 23, 2020, we were providing all of our services remotely.
We had been thinking about expanding into telehealth over the past year, but we had all sorts of reasons why it wouldn’t, couldn’t, and shouldn’t work. And then one day, it had to work or we wouldn’t have been able to take care of our patients.
Topic(s): President's Message, audiology, Telehealth, tele-audiology, teleaudiology, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), CARES Act, Medicare, cochlear implant codes, Cochlear Implants (CI)
The primary objective of local, state, and federal response to COVID-19 is to minimize mortality and mitigate explosive demand for acute health-care services related to COVID-19 complications, especially those that require care in intensive care units.
Governmental responses have varied from statewide stay-at-home orders to more incremental approaches targeting restrictions in specific industries and locations. Certainly, many of these restrictions are warranted and necessary to achieve the desired public health outcomes.
Topic(s): COVID-19, Pediatric Audiology, pediatrics, Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI), Patient care, tele-audiology
Health-care providers are scrambling to keep up with the demand for telehealth services as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic sweeps across the nation and world. Many are seeing unexpected benefits in the shift to connected health—and hoping the momentum continues after the emergency is over.
Topic(s): Telehealth, tele-audiology, teleaudiology, telemedicine, COVID-19, social distancing, curbside, curbside care, Practice Management, clinical audiology, clinical care
