The Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians Advocacy Committee has been closely monitoring two bills that had final legislative action this week.
TELEMEDICINE: The MAFP has been following and working with legislators regarding a telemedicine bill to provide payment parity for physicians offering telemedicine services to patients. When payment parity language was removed on the Senate floor, we were hopeful we could work with stakeholders to not just improve the bill that passed the Senate but also work toward payment parity. When it became clear that payment parity was not going to be possible this session, our priority was to work for the best coverage parity bill. The MAFP maintained the position that an audio-only visit to establish a physician-patient relationship is not considered the standard of care. We were hopeful a compromise would be reached by the Senate and House, but sadly the bill died late Monday night.
The MAFP would like to thank both the Senate and the House for their diligent work on the telemedicine bill. We realize that sometimes consensus cannot be reached and we will work with both chambers to move forward with coverage parity and payment parity, with patient safety at the forefront.
Patient safety is paramount in everything we advocate for at the Capitol. Although audio-only to establish a physician-patient relationship might have been helpful during COVID, it is not the safe practice of quality medicine that Mississippians deserve. What was used for disease mitigation and convenience during a global pandemic should not be considered normal or adequate care outside of the pandemic. We maintain that telemedicine is a tremendous extension to a physician’s practice but should have an audio-visual component for new patients. The House of Representatives agreed with us on this position, and we appreciate their commitment to patient safety. We will continue to work with telemedicine advocates in the Senate and other medical groups to make sure our positions are known and patient safety is not sacrificed.
MEDICAID TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS BILL: Additionally, during the last days of session, the two chambers were able to come to an agreement on the Medicaid Technical Amendments (Med Tech) Bill. The 2021 Med Tech bill is very positive for Medicaid providers and we look forward to the Division implementing the changes that were discussed during the hearings prior to the session. Our thanks to MAFP Advocacy Committee member Dr. Dustin Gentry who represented the MAFP at the October Medicaid hearing at the capitol and highlighted solutions to help primary care physicians.. Our own MAFP Lobbyist Ashley Thompson has been working many months with a group of organizations to bring all issues to the table and they worked together to achieve the best bill. The Mississippi Hospital Association has shared their summary of the Med Tech bill that is on its way to the Governor's desk.
The bill did not include post-partum coverage extended, but Congress has passed a bill that gives states the option to extend the coverage from 60 days to 12 months. This would definitely help address the nation's high rate of preventable maternal mortality and morbidity, so the MAFP will continue to work toward that goal.
Thank you to everyone who made phone calls earlier this week regarding the Division of Medicaid's appropriation bill to ensure the Med Tech bill was passed.
The MAFP will provide a detailed update of the 2021 Legislative Session in the coming weeks.
