Telehealth

Dear Valued Patient:

We are pleased to offer you an opportunity to participate in our new TELEHEALTH office visit program. Due to the COVID 19 crisis, we have expanded our services to you as a part of our outreach to our medical community.

Here is how it works:

We ask that you download ZOOM.US on your computer, laptop, smartphone or other device that has video and audio capabilities.

Complete our Telehealth registration questionnaire and consent form and then submit the form.

Once we receive your information, one of our team members will review and communicate the information to one of our clinicians.

After careful review, a team member will contact you to schedule an appointment that meets your needs!

Thomas W. Hopkins, M.D. & Staff

FAQs on our Telehealth visit Program:

1. What is telehealth?

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) defines telehealth as the use of electronic information and telecommunications technologies to support and promote long-distance clinical health care, patient and professional health-related education, and public health and health administration. Technologies include videoconferencing, the internet, store- and-forward imaging, streaming media, and landline and wireless communications.

Telehealth services may be provided, for example, through audio, text messaging, or video communication technology, including videoconferencing software.

For purposes of reimbursement, certain payors, including Medicare and Medicaid, may impose restrictions on the types of technologies that can be used.1 Those restrictions do not limit the scope of the HIPAA Notification of Enforcement Discretion regarding COVID-19 and remote telehealth communications.

Telehealth services are not meant to replace typical office visits recommended by clinicians, yet they are potentially, valuable alternative when employed correctly.

2. What is the cost for Telehealth services?

Telehealth services are now being offered more broadly by physicians and hospital systems as a way to deliver essential medical services to the community. Given the COVID 19 crisis, Medicare and many Health plans are covering the costs of these types of medical visits under specific guidelines.

3. What does a typical telehealth visit look like?

A typical telehealth visit resembles a routine visit, yet the patient and physician are not physically in the same room, and therefore, physical contact is not engaged.