Faculty Publications

State Policy Action On Medicaid Telemedicine Reimbursement Laws

Document Type

Article

Keywords

Medicaid, Multivariate regression, Reimbursement laws, Telemedicine

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Health Policy and Technology

Volume

5

Issue

1

First Page

32

Last Page

39

Abstract

Objective: The spread of Medicaid telemedicine is limited due to the lack of comprehensive provider reimbursement laws. As federal legislation for insurance coverage lags behind its demand, states have taken the lead by passing tele-Medicaid reimbursement policy; yet, states vary on levels of comprehensiveness to cover all Medicaid providers, telemedicine technology, and service sites. This lack of uniformity creates a fragmented tele-Medicaid environment. The objective of this study is to explore state factors that predict policy adoption of comprehensive tele-Medicaid insurance reimbursement laws. Methods: We use multivariate regression analysis and state-level data and control for political, socioeconomic, and demand factors. Results: Ordered logistic regression analysis shows that states with greater household Internet access rate and a greater number of rural health clinics are more likely to pass comprehensive Medicaid telemedicine reimbursement laws. States with a greater history of adopting health insurance reform policies (not requiring technology for support) are not as likely to pass tele-Medicaid reimbursement laws that require technology. Conclusion: Comprehensive tele-Medicaid reimbursement laws are more likely to be adopted in states with a greater Internet technology capacity, and greater rural clinic infrastructure. States who have previously passed innovative health insurance policies are not adopting the tele-Medicaid insurance laws.

Department

Department of Political Science

Original Publication Date

3-1-2016

DOI of published version

10.1016/j.hlpt.2015.10.007

Repository

UNI ScholarWorks, Rod Library, University of Northern Iowa

Language

en

Link to Full Text

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