On Tuesday, March 19th, TAHC&H director of Government Relations and Regulatory Affairs, Sarah Mills testified in support of HB 1063, by Representative Four Price. Additionally, on Wednesday, March 20th, we will also testify on a similar bill in the House Public Health committee, HB 1738, by Representative Ryan Guillen.
|
Background
In 2011 the Texas Legislature passed SB 293 (Watson, Davis) relating to telemedicine medical services, telehealth services, and home telemonitoring services provided to certain Medicaid recipients.
The bill authorized the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to establish a statewide program that permits reimbursement for home telemonitoring services under the Texas State Medicaid program.
|
|
What is Home Telemonitoring?
Licensed home and community services agencies (HCSSAs) use home technology as a patient-management approach to patients’ health indicators (blood pressure, asthma, hypertension, etc.) at a distance. Home telemonitoring presents an opportunity to track and influence patient compliance with home health plans of care and potentially improve outcomes. When home care agencies are able to respond quickly to patient needs as reported by a home telemonitoring device it improves outcomes and prevents emergency room visits.
|
|
What does HB 1063 do and why do we support this bill?
This bill removes the sunset date that would have removed the benefit from Medicaid Covered Services and allows the benefit to continue to be reimbursed under Medicaid. It also adds three diagnoses to the list of covered diagnosis that expands the benefit to medically complex children as noted in the language below.
|
(c-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (c)(1), the program
|
|
|
|
required under this section must also provide that home
|
|
|
telemonitoring services are available to pediatric persons who:
|
|
|
(1) are being concurrently treated by at least three
|
|
|
medical specialists;
|
|
|
(2) are diagnosed with end-stage solid organ disease;
|
|
|
(3) have received an organ transplant; or
|
|
|
(4) require mechanical ventilation.
|
|
|
|
We support this bill as it allows home care agencies to provide a service to improve the health outcomes of their patients while keeping costs for delivering home care services down. As technology improves we will see more use of home Telemonitoring to improve outcomes and contain costs.
|
|
 |
What does HB 1738 do?
Similar to HB 1063, this bill removes the sunset date for home Telemonitoring and adds the pediatric diagnoses. Some differences include:
- a proposed payment for medication management that because of the additional fiscal note will most likely be removed from the bill,
- adds FQHCs to the bill, that will also likely be removed
- prescribes the certification period (this will likely also be removed to ensure flexibility through medical policy)
- requires the commission to develop a process to prevent fraud and verify the success of the data transmission
- includes a study focusing on fraud, waste abuse that will be concluded by Sept. 2020.
We are working with the bill author on making some changes to the bill as noted above and support the continuation of home Telemonitoring as a benefit under Medicaid.
What happens now?
HB 1063 (Four Price) will be pended in committee since it was tagged with hefty price tag at $9 million. We are working with the bill author, HHSC and a coalition of stakeholders to remove the fiscal note in order to achieve passage through the committee. We will keep members updated on the progress of this bill.
To view the testimony click on this link and go to 2:00:
HB 1738 (Ryan Guillen) will be heard in committee on Wednesday, March 20th. We are currently working with the Author to merge his bill language with Four Price’s bill language. We will let members know how this bill is received in committee and what happens as it moves through the process.