CASP CEU Center

Telehealth

CASP Organizational Guidelines: Chapter 16

Section: Clinical Operations

Format: PDF Download

Released: January, 31 2022

Chapter Overview:

Broadly defined as the use of electronic information and telecommunication technologies to support and promote long-distance clinical health care, telehealth has the potential to extend the reach of existing health care resources and change how some behavioral health care is delivered. In communities with provider shortages and limited access to specialty care, telehealth service delivery models are critical for ensuring that patients can access necessary care. Additionally, telehealth models can help to reduce health care costs and improve the quality of care by leveraging technology to bring specialty provider knowledge directly to the patient (Lindgren et al., 2016).

Telehealth has been increasingly used across the health care industry to enhance the delivery and coordination of care. According to the Center for Connected Health Policy’s 2020 report, State Telehealth Laws and Reimbursement Policies (Center for Connected Health Policy, 2020), 42 states and the District of Columbia have laws that govern private payer reimbursement of telehealth, and all 50 states and the District of Columbia provide Medicaid reimbursement for health care services provided via synchronous video. The rapid adoption and expansion of telehealth among the nation’s leading health care systems have correspondingly led to its increased application within applied behavior analysis (ABA) treatment models for autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

ABA provider organizations should consider using telehealth models to deliver parent training, patient consultation, and case management of comprehensive and focused ABA treatment within tiered service delivery models.