Recently, while discussing which policies expanding telehealth to address COVID-19 would remain after the pandemic, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma said, “I think the genie is out of the bottle on this one.” She is right. COVID-19 has rapidly accelerated the adoption and use of telehealth services. For instance, telehealth visits for Medicare beneficiaries went up from 10,000 per week to 300,000 per week as of March 28 – and that number has only continued to skyrocket.
Now more than ever, people want to avoid in-person care, and meeting these demands means a massive shift in our healthcare system. Telehealth is part of the equation, but truly meeting the moment means robust care delivery in the home powered by technology. In March, we recognized the increased desire for telehealth services and extended our advanced home technology package including telehealth, care collaboration, and home monitoring tools at no cost to our network of 8,000 home health agencies.
We did so because we believe that not only is home the right site of care for many health needs, but tech-enabled home care can help more people get the care they need where they want it.
At CareCentrix, we understand the importance of focusing on care in the home – in fact, it has been part of our core mission for over two decades. Despite the changes and challenges brought on by COVID-19, through our robust home care network, we continue to provide quality care to patients, thanks in part to our innovative technology platform and by leveraging data from nearly 270 million patient records, along with massive public data sets that incorporate economic, psychosocial, and social determinants of health factors.
A survey released in January 2020 by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions predicted that, by the year 2040, scientific and technological advances will completely transform the healthcare system and overhaul how we currently provide care. Nearly 75 percent of health plan executives and other industry leaders noted that addressing challenges around the drivers of social determinants of health would not be easy, and that these challenges would persist for the coming decades.
In order to improve patient outcomes and drive down costs, we need to consider patients’ non-clinical factors so that we can provide consistent and holistic care that fits their personal needs. CareCentrix has been addressing these non-clinical factors for as long as we have focused on moving care into the home.
Our HomeBridge Platform allows payors to build optimal provider networks and ensure the patient is matched to the right provider based on their unique needs. By deploying clinical and technology services, we can provide a personalized approach for each individual and close care gaps. This is available to the entire care team for optimal communication and coordination. Our systems use A.I. technology and machine learning to gather data that will create even better solutions in the future.
As CMS moves to cover more home care services in the coming years, we understand that payors might not be equipped to take full advantage of these new regulations. This is why CareCentrix will continue to partner with health plans to offer its innovative platform connecting patients’ care teams and data to provide a seamless transition from hospital to the home.
