October 15, 2025
Jeffrey Young
Medicare will hold claims for telehealth and hospital-at-home services while Congress is at an impasse over funding the government and renewing key healthcare programs, the agency said in a notice Wednesday.
The legal authorities for fee-for-service Medicare to cover telehealth and hospital-at-home care expired Oct. 1. CMS has instructed Medicare billing contractors to hold claims for services performed on or after that date, the agency said in the notice.
Congress failed to extend these programs amid the stalemate over fiscal 2026 government spending, which led to a shutdown that began Oct. 1.