ICYMI: “Telehealth Access Improves Care for People with Lupus”

Op-ed in RealClear Health Highlights Need for Congressional Action To Safeguard Virtual Care for People with Lupus, Other Chronic Conditions

In case you missed it, in a recent op-ed published in RealClear Health, Patrick Wildman, senior vice president of advocacy and government relations at the Lupus Foundation of America, highlights the momentum for Congress to protect pandemic-era Medicare telehealth flexibilities. Wildman discusses the important role virtual care plays in lupus and chronic condition care, noting that “[c]ontinued delay puts millions of Americans with chronic conditions like lupus at risk of losing access to the critical care they rely on.”

As Wildman writes, “Lupus is an unpredictable and misunderstood autoimmune disease that ravages different parts of the body and affects an estimated 1.5 million Americans… Telehealth has the potential to provide people living with lupus and other chronic conditions with the flexible and dependable care they need for managing complicated diseases and conditions.”

He goes on to note that, “ [e]xtreme fatigue, joint pain, and inflammation throughout the body are common symptoms of lupus, which can make traveling to a doctor’s appointment a very challenging task for a person with lupus,” and discusses the travel and immune system benefits of receiving care virtually for many people with lupus. 

Wildman also writes on the shortage of rheumatologists and importance of telehealth in receiving specialty care, remarking that “[w]ith virtual care options, patients can choose from a larger pool of specialists and access care quicker, improving care and treatment.”

“A 2022 study found that patients with lupus nephritis receiving follow up visits via telemedicine resulted in better patient satisfaction and similar short-term disease control as patients receiving standard of care,” he continues. 

The piece concludes with a call for urgent congressional action: “Telehealth remains integral to many people living with lupus… Unfortunately, millions of patients are at risk of losing access to these vital telehealth flexibilities at the end of 2024 without urgent congressional action. Medicare telehealth flexibilities were extended under Public Health Emergency (PHE) in 2020, and again in 2022, but expire at the end of this year… We recognize the need for Congress to enact protections for telehealth services, extending current flexibilities for at least two years without additional restrictions, to safeguard access to care for people living with lupus and other chronic diseases.”

Read the full op-ed in RealClear Health HERE and learn more about how Congress can act to permanently protect telehealth access HERE.