Journal article
Comparison of Telehealth and In-Person Behavioral Health Services and Payment in a Large Rural Multisite Usual Care Study
Telemedicine journal and e-health, Vol.29(11), pp.1613-1623
11/01/2023
DOI: 10.1089/tmj.2022.0445
PMID: 37036816
Abstract
Telehealth and in-person behavioral health services have previously shown equal effectiveness, but cost studies have largely been limited to travel savings for telehealth cohorts. The purpose of this analysis was to compare telehealth and in-person cohorts, who received behavioral health services in a large multisite study of usual care treatment approaches to examine relative value units (RVUs) and payment.
We used current procedural terminology codes for each encounter to identify RVUs and Medicare payment rates. Mixed linear regression models compared telehealth and in-person cohorts on RVUs, per-encounter payment rates, and total-episode payment rates.
We found the behavioral health services provided by telehealth to have modest, but statistically significantly lower RVUs (i.e., less provider work in time spent and case complexity), per-encounter payments, and total episode payments than the in-person cohort. Despite Medicare rates discounting payments for nonphysician providers and the in-person cohort using clinical social workers more frequently, the services provided by the telehealth cohort still had lower payments. Thus, the differences observed are due to the in-person cohort receiving higher payment RVU services than the telehealth cohort, which was more likely to receive briefer therapy sessions and other less expensive services.
Behavioral health services provided by telehealth used services with lower RVUs than behavioral health services provided in-person, on average, even after adjusting for patient demographics and diagnosis. Observed differences in Medicare payments resulted from the provider type and services used by the two cohorts; thus, costs and insurance reimbursements may vary for others.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Comparison of Telehealth and In-Person Behavioral Health Services and Payment in a Large Rural Multisite Usual Care Study
- Creators
- Marcia M Ward - University of IowaKnute D Carter - University of IowaDivya Bhagianadh - Rutgers, The State University of New JerseyFred Ullrich - University of IowaKimberly A S Merchant - University of IowaJames P Marcin - University of California, DavisKari Beth Law - West Virginia UniversityCarly McCord - Texas A&M UniversityJonathan Neufeld - University of MinnesotaEve-Lynn Nelson - University of Kansas Medical CenterDan M Shane - University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Telemedicine journal and e-health, Vol.29(11), pp.1613-1623
- DOI
- 10.1089/tmj.2022.0445
- PMID
- 37036816
- NLM abbreviation
- Telemed J E Health
- eISSN
- 1556-3669
- Language
- English
- Electronic publication date
- 04/10/2023
- Date published
- 11/01/2023
- Academic Unit
- Rural Telehealth Research Center; Health Management and Policy; Economics; Biostatistics; Public Policy Center (Archive)
- Record Identifier
- 9984388756802771
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