Military treatment facility (MTF) patients will likely see some of their scheduled appointments canceled and moved to telehealth while Defense Health Agency (DHA) officials begin to "scrub" schedules and clear the way for coronavirus patients, Regina Julian, the coordinator between DHA and military services, said during a Facebook-based town hall with Pentagon health officials March 17. "What we have asked the (MTFs) to do ... to 'scrub the templates’," Julian explained. MTF patients will receive a cancellation notice and/or telephone call regarding their appointments. But “soon after” that, those patients should have someone from the MTF reach out to schedule a virtual telephone visit with their provider, “where that's feasible," she said. Other patients may be notified of new precautions for visits that can be done only in person. DHA is looking to offer telehealth appointments to active-duty patients. ACDU is expected to receive care from the direct-care system. MTF patients who have elective procedures may be asked to postpone, said Col. Neil Page, deputy of DHA's clinical support division. Those delay decisions will be made based on the current coronavirus patient load on a facility-by-facility basis. "Tricare users can also receive doctor help via telehealth ‘app’ services or community-based civilian providers, Julian said. Tricare covers consultations from apps that provide HIPPA-compliant and video-based care. (Source: Military.com 03/17/20) Gulf Coast Note: No MTFs were specifically identified by DHA or Military.com. Within the Gulf Coast region there are MTF Air Force facilities at Keesler AFB, Miss., Eglin AFB and Naval Hospital Pensacola, Fla. https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/03/17/military-hospitals-cancel-appointments-shift-telehealth-covid-19-response.html
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