What’s changed in telehealth services?

January 8, 2024

The other day, another coder asked me whether post-operative services could be performed under telehealth. It occurred to me that there are probably more coders with the same questions. So, we’re devoting this week’s Coffee & Coding to answers.

The short answer to the coder’s specific question: No. For Post-op 99024, the global period isn’t covered for in-person visits, so neither will it be covered for telehealth visits.

Longer answer to more general questions: Telehealth services have evolved from the early days of COVID-19. As the pandemic has receded, some services are no longer needed. For the past year, CMS has been dropping hints that changes were coming, and in October they came. In fact, telehealth services was heavily affected by changes for 2024. As we noted in an earlier edition of Coffee & Coding, previously covered audio-only visits have mostly (but, as you’ll notice below, not entirely) been excluded.

We also know that telehealth is under increased scrutiny by payors, and you’ll need to include very specific criteria in the documentation to support a telehealth visit.

With that in mind, and so you can readily answer questions from your fellow providers and coders about what telehealth services are covered, here’s the complete list for 2024.