Healthcare providers across the US are increasingly turning to telemedicine, knowing it reduces readmissions, improves patient outcomes and reduces costs. The strong business case alone has prompted hospitals and organizations to "elevate the technology to a vital place" in their care plans. From connected pediatric intensive-care specialties and telestroke services to cancer and chronic obstructive-pulmonary disease, telemedicine is helping share data more widely and catch diseases further upstream than ever before. Despite the successes, Medicare remains one of its biggest obstacles, as a lack of "authorization for telemedicine" hampers progress, while the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services continues to exclude telehealth for 80 percent of Medicare beneficiaries in less remote areas.
Healthcare providers across the US are increasingly turning to telemedicine, knowing it reduces readmissions, improves patient outcomes and reduces costs. The strong business case alone has prompted hospitals and organizations to "elevate the technology to a vital place" in their care plans. From connected pediatric intensive-care specialties and telestroke services to cancer and chronic obstructive-pulmonary disease, telemedicine is helping share data more widely and catch diseases further upstream than ever before. Despite the successes, Medicare remains one of its biggest obstacles, as a lack of "authorization for telemedicine" hampers progress, while the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services continues to exclude telehealth for 80% of Medicare beneficiaries in less remote areas.