How AsyncHealth Fits Every U.S. Reimbursement Model 

Peter Yellowlees MD

One of the most persistent myths in healthcare innovation is that new care models such as asynchronous care require new reimbursement codes. In reality, the opposite is true. The most successful platforms fit cleanly into existing payment structures while improving efficiency, access, and financial performance. AsyncHealth was built with this principle in mind. 

Rather than replacing clinician work or redefining billable services, AsyncHealth’s Async platform removes the most time‑consuming and least scalable parts of care delivery—intake interviewing, structured data collection, and documentation—so clinicians can focus on diagnosis, decision‑making, and treatment. As a result, Async works across virtually every reimbursement model currently used in the United States. 

Fee‑for‑Service and CPT‑Based Care 

In traditional fee‑for‑service environments—psychiatry, primary care, and specialty clinics—Async supports standard Evaluation & Management (E/M) billing. The platform gathers medically appropriate histories, symptom scales, and risk assessments asynchronously, producing clinician‑ready documentation that is reviewed and validated by the treating provider. 

The result is a documented ~50% reduction in intake and documentation time and the ability for clinicians to see more patients without extending work hours. In fee‑for‑service settings, time savings translate directly into additional revenue—often up to tens of thousands of dollars per clinician per year—without changing how services are billed. 

Medicare and Behavioral Health Integration 

Medicare already allows patient histories to be collected electronically as part of E/M services, and it supports team‑based and consultative care models. Async fits naturally into this framework by shifting data collection out of the visit while preserving clinician oversight and medical decision‑making. 

For practices participating in behavioral health integration or Collaborative Care (CoCM), Async enables psychiatrists to review comprehensive, standardized patient data and provide consultative input without live patient encounters. This allows a single psychiatrist to support larger patient panels, improving both access and margins under monthly bundled payments. 

Medicaid, Community Mental Health, and FQHCs 

In Medicaid‑funded environments—community mental health programs, FQHCs, and nonprofit clinics—care is typically reimbursed through case rates, PPS/APM payments, or bundled claims rather than per‑visit CPT billing. 

Here, Async functions as care‑delivery infrastructure. By eliminating intake bottlenecks, reducing no‑shows, and standardizing documentation, the platform increases throughput and improves service quality without adding staff. Even when reimbursement is fixed, these efficiency gains translate into real financial value by lowering cost per encounter and expanding access within existing budgets. 

CalAIM and Whole‑Person Care in California 

California’s CalAIM initiative explicitly supports flexible, whole‑person care models and allows asynchronous data collection. Async aligns directly with these goals by supporting intake, triage, and assessment across CalAIM priority domains, with services bundled into existing CalAIM claims. 

For counties and contracted providers, this means faster access to care, more consistent assessments, and scalable programs that do not depend on hiring additional clinicians.  

Capitation, PMPM, and Value‑Based Contracts 

Under capitation and per‑member‑per‑month (PMPM) arrangements, financial success depends on delivering high‑quality care at the lowest sustainable cost. Async excels in these environments by reducing the amount of clinician time required per patient while improving early identification of risk and need. 

In value‑based and outcomes‑linked contracts, Async’s standardized intake processes, elimination of no‑shows, and rapid time‑to‑care support better access metrics, patient experience scores, and downstream cost reduction—key drivers of shared savings and quality bonuses. 

A Reimbursement‑Agnostic Platform 

Across all of these models, the core principle remains the same: 

In fee‑for‑service models, Async converts time savings into revenue. In bundled and capitated models, Async converts time savings into margin. 

That is what makes Async not just a clinical innovation, but durable healthcare infrastructure.