Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is raising the alarm over a so-called “Telehealth Cliff” that could impact thousands of upstate New York seniors.
The Democrat is calling for bipartisan support of a two-year extension of Medicare reimbursements for telehealth appointments.
“It allows people who can’t get to a hospital to get good healthcare. So, it’s convenient for them. You don’t have to take a day off of work, you don’t have to drive 50 miles and wait in the hospital. You can just set up an appointment, so it’s good for them. It makes healthcare better because if you have a pain or something wrong and you have to make an appointment at a hospital you say to heck with it. But if you can just sit by your computer or even by your phone, and it can be used in any kind of phone, even mine since I have a flip phone,” said Schumer.
Schumer spoke at Nathan Littauer Hospital in Gloversville Wednesday. He says there are nearly 224,000 seniors across the Capital Region and Mohawk Valley covered by Medicare, and 14,000 in Fulton County.
Schumer also made a stop in Holley in Orleans County. He noted that there are more than 227,000 seniors across the Rochester-Finger Lakes region with Medicare who could lose access to telehealth services.
During the pandemic, the federal government enabled the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to reimburse patients for telehealth expenses, allowing healthcare providers to expand their audio-only services.
Schumer says the expansion has improved healthcare outcomes for New York seniors.
“Let’s say there’s this top specialist who’s needed in Syracuse or New York City or Rochester. By telehealth, you can say, ‘set an appointment and let them come in,’ which you couldn’t get in a hospital here. And it makes it cheaper because everyone is more efficient. So, it’s a great thing,” said Schumer.
In a statement, Richard Davis, CEO of Rochester Regional Health, said that "Maintaining Medicare reimbursement for telehealth is key to keeping this care affordable and accessible for patients statewide." He said that telehealth makes it easier for patients to receive care without worrying about mobility or transportation.
Dr. Mike Dinkels transitioned to telehealth appointments prior to the pandemic, but the expansion of federal support allowed his practice to see upwards of 25,000 ICU patients over the past six years.
“Telemedicine has made me a better provider. It has gotten me in touch with more patients, has put me in the right place at the right time with the correct other providers and correct patients in ICUs locally. We provide telehealth coverage in seven different counties. Here in Nathan Littauer this was our first shop pre-COVID. With the rules that were put in place we expanded and it would be great for everyone to expand further,” said Dinkels.
Devjit Roy is the Chief Medical Officer at the hospital. He says for rural communities, increased access to telehealth appointments can be lifesaving.
“In our region here, not everyone’s got internet. Not every patient that’s an elder can make it into the office. But then it’s, a lot of the times, patients that don’t even know that they’re sick. And those are the scariest ones because they could be young, and they just don’t know. So, with this extra ability to see these patients we could actually hit something off when it’s early enough. A hospital like us needs this extension because how else are we going to get help here? It’s hard to recruit to areas like this,” said Roy.
The legislation that gives CMS the flexibility to cover telehealth appointments is set to expire at the end of the year.
Schumer is in his final weeks as majority leader after Republicans took control of the chamber in November’s election.
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