The AP (2/14, Alonso-Zaldivar) reports that on Thursday, HHS officials said “Medicare wants to change how it pays for emergency ambulance services to give seniors more options besides going to a hospital emergency department.” Alternatives “could include going to an urgent care center, a doctor’s office, or even treatment at home under supervision of a doctor via telehealth links.” The article says this is only “a pilot project for now, but if adopted nationwide, the idea could save Medicare more than $500 million a year.”
Modern Healthcare (2/14, King, Subscription Publication) reports that the pilot would only “apply to Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries.” The piece adds that HHS expects to request “applications to participate in the model by summer 2019.”
Related Links:
— “Medicare ambulance rides may no longer end up at ER, “Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, AP, February 14, 2019