MACPAC wrote to the chairmen and ranking members of the Senate Finance Committee and House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services commenting on the Secretary’s report to Congress on the use of telehealth to provide substance use disorder services to children covered by Medicaid.
The Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment (SUPPORT) for Patients and Communities Act (SUPPORT Act, P.L. 115-271) directed the Secretary to report on best practices and potential solutions for reducing barriers to using services delivered via telehealth for treatment of SUD among pediatric populations with Medicaid coverage.
In the letter, MACPAC agrees with the report’s conclusion that additional research is needed on the effects of telehealth in Medicaid; these include effects on utilization, cost, outcomes, quality, and beneficiary and provider satisfaction. MACPAC also urges the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to publish analyses on telehealth in Medicaid using data from the Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System (T-MSIS), and to explore and document whether there are any data quality and completeness concerns beyond typical claims lag that would affect studies on telehealth. The Commission’s letter notes that states pursuing telehealth to provide pediatric SUD or other services would benefit from technical assistance from CMS and structured opportunities to share information with other states on policy design and overcoming barriers. Finally, MACPAC comments that ensuring equitable access to pediatric SUD and other health services for Medicaid beneficiaries via telehealth will require additional strategies to address barriers related to technology and availability of broadband.