Telehealth

Amwell is reportedly exploring a $200 million buyout of online therapy company Talkspace, Seeking Alpha reported Nov. 28. 

Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Avera Health has received $2.5 million from the Health Resources and Services Administration to address the workforce shortage through telehealth, virtual nursing and rural healthcare education.

As telehealth use expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic, many states passed laws requiring payers to reimburse providers at the same rate as in-person visits. But not all of them.

Becker’s has covered five health systems implementing new telehealth programs since Oct. 27:

Penn Medicine's telehealth program was able to help alleviate barriers to opioid use disorder treatment and increased buprenorphine prescriptions by 89 percent, according to a study published Nov. 16 in NEJM Catalyst.

South Dakota is spending $1.7 million to install telehealth services in ambulances through a partnership with Sioux Falls-based telehealth provider Avel eCare, The Mitchell Republic reported Nov. 21.

Attorneys general in 45 states signed a letter urging the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to permanently extend COVID-19 pandemic-era telehealth flexibilities that allowed clinicians to prescribe buprenorphine to patients over the phone,…

Des Moines, Iowa-based UnityPoint Health has rolled out two new telehealth programs for patients seeking treatments for common ailments.

Telehealth support company OpenLoop is partnering with BlueJeans by Verizon to provide its clients with access to BlueJeans' HIPAA-compliant telehealth platform. 

Telehealth company Teladoc has reached the 50 million visit milestone, and a quarter of Americans now have access to Teladoc through their employer or health plan.