The Use of Telehealth in School-Based Health Centers.

Telehealth is a growing model of delivering health care. School-based health centers (SBHCs) provide access to health care for youth in schools and increasingly use telehealth in care delivery. This article examines the recent growth of telehealth use in SBHCs, and characteristics of SBHCs using telehealth, including provider types, operational characteristics, and schools and students served. The percentage of SBHCs using telehealth grew from 7% in 2007-2008 to 19% in 2016-2017. Over 1 million students in over 1800 public schools have access to an SBHC using telehealth, which represents 2% of students and nearly 2% of public schools in the United States. These SBHCs are primarily in rural communities and sponsored by hospitals. This growing model presents an opportunity to expand health care access to youth, particularly in underserved areas in the United States and globally. Further research is needed to fully describe how telehealth programs are implemented in school settings and their potential impacts.

Twenty Years Of School-Based Health Care Growth And Expansion.

Youth in underserved communities lack access to consistent sources of high-quality health care. School-based health centers (SBHCs) address this challenge through the provision of primary care, mental health care, and other health services in schools. This article describes the current status of SBHCs nationally, including changes over the past twenty years. Data were collected through the School-Based Health Alliance's National School-Based Health Care Census. The number of SBHCs doubled from 1,135 in 1998-99 to 2,584 in 2016-17. During this time they adapted to the changing health care landscape and community needs. Sponsorship shifted predominantly to federally qualified health centers, and SBHCs provided access to primary care and, often, to mental, oral, and other health services to 10,629 schools and over 6.3 million students. SBHCs have grown steadily since 1998, and recent expansion through federally qualified health centers and telehealth technology forecasts even greater growth, innovation, and access for underserved communities.

Health Benefits In 2015: Stable Trends In The Employer Market.

The annual Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Educational Trust Employer Health Benefits Survey found that in 2015, average annual premiums (employer and worker contributions combined) were $6,251 for single coverage and $17,545 for family coverage. Both premiums rose 4 percent from 2014, continuing several years of modest growth. The percentage of firms offering health benefits and the percentage of workers covered by their employers' plans remained statistically unchanged from 2014. Eighty-one percent of covered workers were enrolled in a plan with a general annual deductible. Among those workers, the average deductible for single coverage was $1,318. Half of large employers either offered employees the opportunity or required them to complete biometric screening. Of firms that offer an incentive for completing the screening, 20 percent provide employees with incentives or penalties that are tied to meeting those biometric outcomes. The 2015 survey included new questions on financial incentives to complete wellness programs and meet specified biometric outcomes as well as questions about narrow networks and employers' strategies related to the high-cost plan tax and the employer shared-responsibility provisions of the Affordable Care Act.

Health benefits in 2014: stability in premiums and coverage for employer-sponsored plans.

The annual Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Educational Trust Employer Health Benefits Survey found that in 2014 the average annual premium (employer and worker contributions combined) for single coverage was $6,025, similar to 2013. The premium for family coverage was $16,834--3 percent higher than a year ago. Average deductibles and most other cost-sharing amounts were similar to those in 2013. On average, in 2014 covered workers paid nearly $5,000 per year for family health insurance premiums, and 18 percent of covered workers were in a plan with an annual single coverage deductible of $2,000 or more. Fifty-five percent of employers offered health benefits in 2014, similar to 2013. The Affordable Care Act has not yet led to substantial changes in the employer-based market. However, the next few years could present a different picture as delayed provisions and other changes take effect. This year's survey included new questions on firms' policies related to enrolling spouses and dependents, enrollment in private exchanges, and the use of narrow networks and financial incentives for wellness programs.

Health benefits in 2013: moderate premium increases in employer-sponsored plans.

Employer-sponsored health insurance premiums rose moderately in 2013, the annual Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Educational Trust (Kaiser/HRET) Employer Health Benefits Survey found. In 2013 single coverage premiums rose 5 percent to $5,884, and family coverage premiums rose 4 percent to $16,351. The percentage of firms offering health benefits (57 percent) was similar to that in 2012, as was the percentage of workers at offering firms who were covered by their firm's health benefits (62 percent). The share of workers with a deductible for single coverage increased significantly from 2012, as did the share of workers in small firms with annual deductibles of $1,000 or more. Most firms (77 percent), including nearly all large employers, continued to offer wellness programs, but relatively few used incentives to encourage employees to participate. More than half of large employers offering health risk appraisals to workers offered financial incentives for completing the appraisal.

Health benefits in 2012: moderate premium increases for employer-sponsored plans; young adults gained coverage under ACA.

Health care premiums rose moderately for single and family employer-sponsored coverage this year, the 2012 annual Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Educational Trust (HRET) Survey of Employer Health Benefits found. Even with the lingering effects of the recession, cost-sharing levels remained relatively stable in 2012. Also remaining stable was the rate at which employers offered coverage, according to the survey, which was based on telephone interviews with 2,121 public and private employers contacted from January through May 2012. The average annual premiums in 2012 were $5,615 for single coverage and $15,745 for family coverage, an increase of 3 and 4 percent, respectively, from 2011. The percentage of firms offering health benefits, 61 percent, was similar to last year's, as was the percentage of workers at offering firms who were covered by their firm's health benefits, 62 percent. One noteworthy change, because of a provision of the Affordable Care Act, is that 2.9 million young adults who would not otherwise have been enrolled in a parent's employer-sponsored health insurance were covered by that insurance in 2012.