CHA News

DMHC Issues All Plan Letter on Telehealth During COVID-19 Pandemic

For directors of reimbursement

This post has been archived and contains information that may be out of date.

On Sept. 4, the Department of Managed Health Care issued All Plan Letter (APL) 20-032 as a continuation of its policies on telehealth during the COVID-19 state of emergency.  

APL 20-009, issued on March 18, requires health plans to allow enrollees to obtain health care via telehealth when medically appropriate during the California declared state of emergency due to COVID-19. APL 20-013, issued on April 7, provides guidance for coding for telehealth services, as well as for the types of services that can be provided via telehealth and the types of providers who may render telehealth services. In addition, the department allows that, as an alternative to listing the provider’s home address as the “practice address,” the plan may continue to list the provider’s practice address as of March 3, 2020 (the day before the Governor declared a state of emergency in California). 

APLs 20-009 and 20-013 remain in effect for the duration of the California declared state of emergency or until further notice from the department, whichever is earlier.  

The provisions of  all three APLs apply to delegated entities to the extent the services the health plan delegated to the entity are impacted by the APL. 

Questions about the APLs should be directed to each plan’s assigned reviewer in the department’s Office of Plan Licensing.