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AGENDA

Review the current COVID 19 situation

The impact of the second wave on mental health

Why Telehealth?

Opportunities for your practice

 

NOVEL CORONAVIRUS (COVID 19) 

The new coronavirus emerged in the human population in early December 2019 in Wuhan, China.

Despite many theories, the link is believed to be through seafood and Wuhan’s live animal markets.

Initial origin is believed to be through bats but could be  through pangolins.

Coronaviruses also include many strains of the common cold viruses, SARS and MERS.

 

Symptoms:

• Fever

• Upper respiratory congestion and cough

• Lower respiratory disease eg. pneumonia

• GI distress, malaise

• Shaking with chills, myalgia, headaches, sore throat, loss of taste and smell.

 

Contagiousness has an R score of 5.7

• Mortality in the US is at 5.6%;

  • 4.0% in California and

  • 4.6% in LA County.

• Incubation period is 2-14 days with the average at 4.2 days

 

EPIDEMIOLOGY

Initial: Wuhan, possibly in November 2019

• Early 12/19- person to person spread in Wuhan

• 12/27  First identification of the new virus in 3 hospital patients

• 1/18- Wide epidemic in Hubei Province, China

• 2/1 - Spread in China, Europe, Asia and N. America

• 2/27-3/4/20-  Community spread in in the US, with first fatality in Washington State

• 3/13- National emergency declared in the US

• 3/20- NYC as epicenter

• 4/1- Global cases hit 1 million mark

• 4/26- Covid 19 cases in US hit 1 million mark

• 5/10 - Mortality in the US at 80,000

 

SECOND WAVE

• The lockdown and the ensuing economic conditions lead to:

• Stress and increased alcoholism.

• An 80X increase in suicides

• PTSD

 

WHY TELE-HEALTH?

In an atmosphere of isolation, Tele-health facilitates:

 

• SOCIAL DISTANCING

  • National urgent care scope and programs

  • Triage of illnesses and complaints

  • Keep the patients at home when well

  • Manage informed transfers to health care facilities to maintain infection control

  • Deal with the patients’ phobia of waiting rooms.

 

• IMPROVED ACCESS

  • Make care available everywhere

  • improve accessibility in rural areas

 

• CO-ORDINATED CARE WITH A VAST ECOSYSTEM OF PROVIDERS

  • Psychiatric care improved with timely counseling and intervention.

 

• OPPORTUNITIES

  • Aligned Tele-health would provide their members a turn-key tele-health solution enabling physicians to conduct secure virtual visits with their patients.

  • This would be through Easy Virtual Visits, Robust Services, and Secure Patient Data.

  

 

Follow up from Dr. Nanda’s Presentation:

What are the CMS modifier codes for billing care during COVID – 19?    Please see this link:

https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Medicare-General-Information/Telehealth/Telehealth-Codes

 

How can we access the Amwell Private Practice product?  Please see this link: 

https://go.amwell.com/aligned-private-practice/

 

Can we get additional information on Revenue Cycle Management?  Fees and Billing Codes.

Here is the process that we use at Aligned.  Please contact Miles Kramer for additional information – mkramer@alignedth.com.

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Recorded by

Parvin D Syal MD