Medicare 2027 Fee Rule Lifts Behavioral Health Pay, Cuts Rates
CMS finalized its 2027 physician fee schedule, raising valuation for SBIRT, smoking cessation and behavioral health while cutting conversion factors 1.8% to 2.3%.
29 articles found
CMS finalized its 2027 physician fee schedule, raising valuation for SBIRT, smoking cessation and behavioral health while cutting conversion factors 1.8% to 2.3%.

Missouri clinics, telehealth and peer recovery programs are adding addiction treatment to prenatal care, after a review found 7 preventable maternal deaths.

Vermont allocated its full $195 million Rural Health Transformation award across nearly 250 projects, with money for addiction urgent care, recovery housing and telehealth.

A new 15-member North Carolina committee met for the first time Oct. 27 to plan mental health care for roughly 4,700 people released from state prisons each year.

Cooper Norcross Health's new mobile integrated health program sends paramedics into Camden to start buprenorphine on scene and connect overdose survivors to care.
New Season's fourth mobile medication unit will dose patients in Yulee, Florida, from 6 to 8 a.m. Monday through Saturday, run out of its Jacksonville clinic.

A CNN investigation found online platforms shipped compounded GLP-1 drugs to people with anorexia after brief questionnaires, sometimes within 24 hours.

West Virginia awarded $500,000 to Potomac Highlands Guild for wearable monitoring and AI tools across eight eastern counties in a federal rural health program.

Hawaii Virtual Care launched a statewide virtual intensive outpatient program for substance use and mental health amid a 39 percent psychiatrist shortage.

Governor Newsom launches CA Bridge Connect, a first-in-the-nation free service offering immediate same-day help for Californians seeking opioid addiction treatment.

SAMHSA updates 42 CFR Part 8 regulations for the first time in 20 years, expanding telehealth prescribing and take-home medication access for opioid treatment programs.

FDA cracks down on illegal online ketamine market with 14 warning letters to websites selling non-approved ketamine products for depression and addiction treatment.

Aptihealth settles for $300,000 after billing Medicaid for no-show appointments as DOJ charges 455 defendants in $6.5 billion health care fraud crackdown targeting telehealth sector.

New FAIR Health data reveals mental health conditions account for 52% of all telehealth diagnoses in Q1 2026, ranking as the top diagnostic category in every U.S. region and every age group including children under 10.

DEA final rule formally eliminates X-waiver for buprenorphine prescribing and extends injectable medication window from 14 to 45 days, removing major barriers to medication-assisted treatment.

Aegis Treatment Centers launches second Mobile Medication Vehicle to bring daily opioid treatment to Amador and Calaveras counties, eliminating geographic barriers in California's Sierra foothills.

DEA and HHS extend COVID-era telehealth flexibilities for prescribing controlled substances including buprenorphine through December 31, 2026, expanding access to addiction treatment nationwide.

Psychiatric Urgent Care of Huntsville opens as North Alabama's first same-day mental health facility, offering immediate access to psychiatric care and telemedicine services statewide

Comprehensive Healthcare launches mobile unit in Ellensburg to expand medication-assisted treatment access in Kittitas County, eliminating geographic barriers for rural patients seeking opioid use disorder care.

Mississippi State Department of Health scales innovative addiction treatment program statewide using Epic EHR technology to identify risk earlier and reduce barriers to care in rural communities.

Flow Neuroscience's transcranial direct current stimulation device becomes first prescription brain stimulation therapy available for home use, offering new option for treatment-resistant depression

Federal initiative targets individuals experiencing homelessness and substance use disorders through outcomes-based approach, but faith-based inclusion and punitive policy context raise concerns among public health advocates.

Ann Arbor-based online addiction provider now treats kratom and 7-hydroxymitragynine dependence through app-based platform, addressing regulatory gap as FDA restricts potent derivatives but leaf products remain unregulated nationwide.

American Society of Addiction Medicine releases first comprehensive update to youth substance use disorder treatment standards in over a decade, addressing telehealth, trauma-informed care, and medication access.

Workit Health's evidence-based virtual care model delivers 62% rural retention at three months—more than double competing programs—with peer-reviewed studies in JAMA Network Open showing perfect buprenorphine adherence among participants.

JAMA Network Open study analyzing Medicare records shows specialists using telemedicine heavily saw only 0.9% more rural patients while treating 3.6% fewer new patients overall.

DEA and HHS codify pandemic-era flexibility, allowing providers to initiate and maintain buprenorphine treatment entirely via telehealth through the end of 2026, a move experts say could save lives and reshape addiction care nationwide.

Digital therapeutics for substance use disorders are gaining traction as researchers identify key strategies to improve engagement and outcomes, with apps reaching patients beyond traditional clinic walls.

New federal rules allow providers to prescribe six-month supply of buprenorphine via audio-only telehealth for opioid use disorder treatment, eliminating pandemic-era restrictions while implementing safeguards.