NOTICE TO OUR PATIENTS CONCERNING TELEHEALTH AFTER END OF PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY
For over 30 years, Naperville Clinical Associates has been proud to provide our patients with top notch, ethical and comprehensive mental health services. Our practice philosophy is that our relationship with our patients is the foundation of treatment.
With the end of the public health emergency on May 11, 2023, we find ourselves needing to adjust again to the new reality of healthcare services. We currently use Doxy.com as our telehealth platform because it is HIPAA compliant and provides security and ease of use for telehealth sessions. As of May, 2023, we will no longer be able to use the telephone or other platforms, such as Facetime, which are not HIPAA compliant. Therefore, in the event that you are being seen by telehealth and have a poor connection, we will NOT be able to convert to a phone session and will need to reschedule the session as a missed appointment.
In accordance with our practice philosophy that our relationship with our patients is the cornerstone of treatment, we will no longer be offering telehealth as a routine alternative to in person sessions, effective May, 2023. We will continue to offer telehealth if our patients are sick or cannot come to the office due to health reasons, such as recovery from surgery, bedrest due to pregnancy or caregiving of a relative in hospice.
We will continue to offer telehealth services in these specific circumstances as long as it is economically feasible. We understand that for many of our patients, telehealth is convenient. We anticipate that reimbursement for telehealth by insurance will be decreasing. With the soaring costs of overhead for small, independent practices, we will not be able to offer telehealth at all if reimbursements are cut.
We understand that you have a lot of choices in healthcare. We are grateful for your trust in our practice and hope that we can continue to navigate these challenges together.