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RJ's avatar

Thank you for your work on this. As you clearly know, telemedicine has been an improved way to offer services to a lot of people who have a variety of different needs. We really should adopt telemedicine as a permanent service availability for all patients.

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Kerry Sheehan's avatar

As a rare disease patient who has medical providers literally across the country I'm very afraid of this. As an immune compromised person I know it will mean the likely shorter lifespan. We need help fighting this because clearly they aren't listening to us. I've been asking my loved ones to start reaching out too.

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Kerry Sheehan's avatar

My plan is to give up most medical care. Not holding titers to vaccines even after having them all repeated I can't afford the risks 😔

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Jess Badger's avatar

Not a choice you should have to make, friend.

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Kerry Sheehan's avatar

Agreed ... I've already had to give up care that's having a greatimpact on me. I used to get manual physical therapy which helped me so much. Unfortunately, once masking ended there wasn't any safe transportation for me anymore. I know how important it was for my health but the risks outweighed the benefits. I should've never had to make that choice. I felt so betrayed the day the last President said COVID is over ... That day be told everyone those of us still taking precautions were just anxious and that's how we're treated... Even while watching our loved ones get sick again and again and again.

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HowBoutTodaySatan's avatar

Good grief. I hadn't heard about this and I'm so glad you took the time to write this up!!!

I'm not on Medicare, but I do lean heavily on telemedicine.

I'll be calling people about this.

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Maureen C. Berry's avatar

Thank you Jess. I was looking for this exact information!

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Rebecca Weger's avatar

Thanks so much for sharing all that!

There are certainly a bunch of us who knew about it and did our best advocacy work towards it last year. And some of us had been counting down for years for that expiration date . ME Action put out some materials last year, and will be doing so again. But you're right, it hasn't gotten a lot of attention. And I don't know why that's true.

One piece that you might be missing in here is that if nothing changes, is that it is mostly *reverting to the Medicare policy that already existed* prior to the pandemic.

It was originally restricted to people in rural areas. Under the pandemic emergency, they expanded telehealth services to everyone. That has been extended several times. And a further extension was included in the budget that was supposed to be passed in December.

When Musk posted on X and got people stirred up about the budget right before it was supposed to pass, they didn't pass the original budget. They passed a temporary budget that goes until March 14th. And telehealth was extended until the end of March when that happened. (Ask me why my next doctor's appointment is for March 27.)

The one change that has been made, is that they are keeping mental Health Services available. But the rest of it does require action. And I think it does require advocacy work.

It's a bipartisan issue that's had a lot of support. Multiple bills have been introduced by multiple people, with sponsors from both side of the aisle.

It would be best if one of the bills passed and made it permanent. But if that can't happen, and it's in the budget process, then that's I think it would be another temporary extension.

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Jess Badger's avatar

That absolutely makes sense that we are reverting back to circa 2019 Medicare. Which is both understandable and crazy given than COVID is here and technologies exist that didn’t then.

But I’m preaching to the choir!

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Colleen Steckel: ME-ICC Info's avatar

Thanks for sharing that background. This impacts so many of us, and hopefully there will be a push to make telehealth a permanent option.

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S Cohen's avatar

Hi Jess

I’m a nurse and worked in public health. I am appalled to hear this.

You may have started this ball rolling already but is the subcommittee for health where the bill you mentioned to extend telehealth has landed. https://energycommerce.house.gov/committees/subcommittee/health

We need to start calling the member’s offices and asking what they are doing about ensuring Medicare access to telehealth. Also call your representative and ask to speak to whomever in the office works in healthcare and telehealth and tell them your situation. They are supposed to advocate for you (hopefully). I will make some calls today.

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Wendy Brown (Auntie Spoonie)'s avatar

Thank you for the time you put into researching and writing about this. I hadn’t heard and I’m effectively homebound with multiple doctors hours away.

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Jess Badger's avatar

You are very welcome, Wendy. I feel like that's the case for a lot of us. I'm hoping for a last minute save here. But at the very least, we all need to begin looking at what might happen and begin making alternate plans if the worst happens. This will affect so many of us.

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Colleen Steckel: ME-ICC Info's avatar

Thank you for delving into this... it was on my list to try to get more details. I appreciate you doing the "leg" work. It is very concerning!

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Jess Badger's avatar

I’m really worried that it will slip through the cracks.

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Stephenie Baldassarre's avatar

Ugh, I hate everything right now! Thank you for your efforts to increase awareness.

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Jess Badger's avatar

Yeah this is a really big blow when we least need it. I’ll keep you posted if I learn something new. I’ll be checking the news daily.

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PMA's avatar

Please for the sake of all who need telehealth services, provide a hard copy of all of this discussion to all of the members of Congress, but at least the minority leaders of the House and Senate.. I know it could be time consuming, but perhaps you can just use a messaging system.

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