Doctors Give Medicare’s Proposal To Pay For Telemedicine Poor Prognosis

The Trump administration wants Medicare for the first time to embrace telemedicine across the country by paying doctors $14 for a five-minute “check-in” phone call with their patients.

But many physicians say the proposed reimbursement will cover a service they already do for free. And the Medicare reimbursement — intended to motivate doctors to communicate with patients outside the office — could have a chilling effect on patients because they would be required to pay a 20 percent cost-sharing charge.

Medicare said the call would be used to help patients determine whether they need to come in for an appointment. But doctors and consultants said the virtual sessions could cover a broad array of services, including monitoring patients starting a new medicine or those trying to manage chronic illnesses, such as diabetes. The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, which provides guidance to Congress, panned the proposal last month, saying it could lead to excess spending without benefiting patients.