Sept. 22, 2017 - With an ever-changing healthcare landscape and a myriad of new payment models, providers are under pressure to provide quality care and lower costs while facing unprecedented competition from other providers. Implementing telehealth and remote patient monitoring (RPM) has been proven to give providers a competitive edge, reduce hospitalization rates, improve outcomes, and reduce costs.

A study by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 30 to 67 percent of hospitalizations among facility residents could be prevented with well-targeted interventions such as telehealth. 

There are numerous other benefits telehealth affords SNF providers, including being well-positioned to grow their business and increase revenue. Examples include:

Gain a competitive advantage
Attract more patients and residents by promoting the convenience and higher quality of care proven with telehealth and RPM. Many SNF residents are in need of specialized care for chronic conditions. By using telehealth, patients can see a specialist or receive care any time of day, giving both patients and their families peace of mind. RPM can help patients become more accountable and engaged with their care, helping to reduce the number of readmissions and length of hospital stays through proactive management.

Lower cost of care
When patients are able to remain in the SNF for care delivery, it eliminates the need to travel to another location for care, which can be time-consuming, costly and may delay the care that is needed. Caregivers are more efficient due to a proactive approach at providing care through monitoring.

Increase reimbursements and referrals
Developing a partnership with an ACO using telehealth and RPM opens up opportunities to potentially receive a percentage of incentives or shared savings payments the ACO receives from the payer for reducing hospitalizations and readmissions. With a successful telehealth partnership and increased revenue, ACO referrals can increase.

There are some requirements for telehealth licensing, medication prescription and reimbursement. Check these suggested resources before planning your telehealth strategy: 

To learn about SNFs’ ability to bill CMM click HERE.

To determine whether you are able to bill for telehealth services, click HERE.

Read our blog post HERE to learn more about the legislation introduced to expand telehealth services and Medicare reimbursement.