March 23, 2020 – We have received many questions about COVID-19 and its impact on people with ALS, their families, and their caregivers. We convened a panel of volunteers and staff to answer these questions – their bios are at the bottom. This situation is rapidly changing. We will update this FAQ as we receive more questions and more current information. If you have questions, please email questions@alsa-national.org.

Also, if you would like to hear our panel discuss these issues on a podcast, please check out the March 19 episode of Connecting ALS at ConnectingALS.org.

In response to congressional action, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services notified providers of a new option for expanded Medicare coverage for telehealth visits. These changes temporarily remove originating site and geographic restrictions from coverage of telehealth under Medicare fee-for-service. This coverage applies to allMedicare-approved telehealth services.

The government temporarily waived restrictions on telehealth in Medicare fee-for-service to enable more seniors to access care from their own homes during the public health emergency brought on by the coronavirus. The provisions were included in the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act.

The telehealth waiver applies to treatment of all diagnosis during the Public Health Emergency, not just COVID-19-related visits.