--- title: "United States | Arbol AI Blog" description: "Arbol blog articles for United States: local regulation, health-system data and day-to-day operations, in plain language with verifiable sources." url: https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/market/united-states/ lang: en --- # United States. What is changing, and what to do about it. Regulation, figures and healthcare operations for United States, in plain language and with a source for every figure. ## 27 articles 1. Jul 27, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [Flu, RSV, and COVID Peak Together. Is Your Front Desk Ready?](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/fall-respiratory-season-capacity-us/) CDC's own season outlook shows flu, RSV, and COVID converge into one hospitalization peak every winter — the planning window closes before phones start ringing. Samuel Giraldo 10 min read 2. Jul 27, 2026 United States Cardiology ### [What a Post-Discharge Hypertension Follow-Up Call Should Cover](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/post-discharge-hypertension-followup-us/) Only 22.5% of US adults with hypertension have their blood pressure controlled. Here's the first-week follow-up protocol that actually lowers readmission risk. Samuel Giraldo 8 min read 3. Jul 27, 2026 United States Dentistry ### [Dental Recall Systems: Why Lapsed Patients Cost More Than You Think](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/dental-recall-system-cleanings-us/) About a third of US adults skip their annual dental visit, and postcards alone rarely bring them back — here's what a working recall system requires. Emilia Santander 8 min read 4. Jul 26, 2026 United States Mental health ### [The hidden gap between a positive PHQ-9 and treatment](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/phq9-followup-primary-care-us/) Positive PHQ-9 screens are not treatment. Peer-reviewed US data show up to 30% get no documented follow-up, and few practices track their own rate. David Lara 10 min read 5. Jul 25, 2026 United States Ophthalmology & endocrinology ### [Diabetic Eye Exam Recall: Closing the Annual Screening Gap](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/diabetic-eye-exam-recall-us/) Only 64.8% of US adults with diabetes report an annual eye exam, short of the federal target — why the exam lapses, and what a recall protocol actually fixes. Veronica Tobon 7 min read 6. Jul 25, 2026 United States Chronic care / geriatrics ### [Chronic Care Management: hitting the monthly cadence every time](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/ccm-outreach-cadence-us/) Medicare pays for CCM when clinical staff log 20+ minutes of monthly care coordination. Here is how practices sustain that cadence for every patient. Tomas Giraldo 12 min read 7. Jul 25, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [Urgent care walk-in vs. scheduled access with overflow handling](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/urgent-care-walkin-vs-scheduled-line-us/) Urgent care visits keep growing, but a scheduled line with overflow handling protects continuity. An honest compare, with a clear verdict for US practices. Tomas Giraldo 10 min read 8. Jul 17, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [Referral leakage: when specialty care is ordered but never booked](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/referral-leakage-specialty/) A referral that never becomes an appointment is silent care and revenue loss. How US specialty operators close the order-to-book gap. Veronica Tobon 9 min read 9. Jul 8, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [Closing AWV gaps without nagging patients](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/awv-gap-closure-without-nagging/) US Medicare Annual Wellness Visit gaps close with eligibility work and measured outreach—not more nagging. A practice playbook for consent-aware AWV follow-up. Veronica Tobon 11 min read 10. Jul 4, 2026 United States Technology ### [Voice AI for scheduling: HIPAA-minded ops](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/voice-ai-hipaa-minded-ops/) Voice AI can book and confirm visits when HIPAA-minded ops set purpose, minimum necessary scripts, BAAs, and audit—without treating this as legal advice. Emilia Santander 12 min read 11. Jul 1, 2026 United States Access ### [Specialty booking handoff: where referrals die](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/specialty-booking-handoff-us/) Specialty referrals die in the booking handoff—not in the exam room. Make order-to-book visible, own the contact loop, and stop silent leakage. Samuel Giraldo 12 min read 12. Jun 26, 2026 United States Access ### [Self-schedule links vs staffed line: verdict for US practices](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/self-schedule-vs-staffed-line-us/) Self-schedule links and staffed phone lines serve different US booking jobs. An honest compare with a clear ops verdict—not a portal fairy tale. Norbelys Chirinos 11 min read 13. Jun 19, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [Weekend overflow without burning the front desk](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/weekend-overflow-without-burnout-us/) Weekend phone demand drains Monday capacity. A US practice playbook for covering overflow without burning the front desk or inventing a 24/7 hire. Tomas Giraldo 11 min read 14. Jun 19, 2026 United States Primary care ### [Medicare Annual Wellness Visit reminders that convert](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/medicare-annual-wellness-visit/) US Medicare covers a yearly Wellness visit at $0 with assignment — if your practice qualifies people, books the right visit type, and follows up. David Lara 10 min read 15. Jun 12, 2026 United States Compliance ### [TCPA for appointment reminders: ops, not panic](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/tcpa-reminders-ops-not-fear/) TCPA-aware appointment reminders for US practices: treat the FCC healthcare exemption as an ops checklist—purpose, cadence, opt-out, scripts. David Lara 12 min read 16. Jun 5, 2026 United States Access ### [Primary-care no-shows: a practical playbook](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/no-show-primary-care-playbook-us/) A US primary-care playbook for no-shows: what trials actually moved rates, how to target outreach, and which metrics prove the slot was protected. Veronica Tobon 12 min read 17. Jun 3, 2026 United States Women's health ### [Postpartum depression screening: what the evidence supports](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/postpartum-depression-screening-primary-care/) Most postpartum depression screening still happens at one six-week visit, even though nearly every state now covers a full year of Medicaid after birth. Emilia Santander 10 min read 18. May 28, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [Governing outreach: who you contact, when, and why](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/governing-patient-outreach-us/) US practices need outreach governance, not more reminders: who is eligible, which channel, what HIPAA and TCPA allow, and what evidence you keep. Emilia Santander 13 min read 19. May 27, 2026 United States Pediatrics ### [Why pediatric practices now face two 2026 vaccine schedules](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/pediatric-vaccination-schedule-2026/) HHS cut the federal schedule to 11 universal vaccines while the AAP's rival 2026 schedule keeps 18 as routine, complicating catch-up and reminders. Tomas Giraldo 10 min read 20. May 20, 2026 United States Primary care ### [GLP-1 coverage in 2026: what it means for primary care](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/glp1-coverage-primary-care/) Medicare, Medicaid and employer plans now cover GLP-1 drugs under different rules and timelines. Here is what that patchwork means for your practice. Norbelys Chirinos 9 min read 21. May 15, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [Front desk overflow: an AI voice layer that keeps your staff](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/front-desk-overflow-ai-layer/) US practices lose capacity when the phone outruns the desk. An AI voice layer absorbs overflow without replacing the people who still own the lobby. Tomas Giraldo 11 min read 22. May 13, 2026 United States Regulation ### [TCPA Consent for Appointment Reminders: What Actually Changed](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/tcpa-appointment-reminders-compliance/) The FCC's TCPA consent rules for reminder calls and texts are still shifting. Here is what your practice's intake process needs to get right now. Samuel Giraldo 10 min read 23. Apr 24, 2026 United States Primary care ### [PHQ-9 screening in US primary care: flow and follow-up](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/depression-screening-primary-care-us/) USPSTF gives depression screening a B grade for adults — the operational gap is what happens after a positive PHQ-9. Build the follow-up path before you scale. Veronica Tobon 10 min read 24. Apr 3, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [Portal vs phone scheduling: what US practices should actually choose](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/portal-vs-phone-scheduling-us/) Phone still dominates how Americans book care. Portals help a minority and shine for continuity — an honest compare with a clear ops verdict. Norbelys Chirinos 9 min read 25. Mar 6, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [Flu season fills chairs that unanswered phones never book](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/flu-season-practice-capacity/) CDC puts flu medical visits in the tens of millions; MGMA ranks phone access among 2026 priorities — yet many practices still leave inbound demand unmeasured. David Lara 12 min read 26. Feb 6, 2026 United States Regulation ### [HIPAA Voice Appointment Reminders: What Yes and No](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/hipaa-voice-appointment-reminders/) HHS treats appointment reminders as treatment under HIPAA—no authorization required—but voicemail limits and confidential-communication requests still apply. Samuel Giraldo 12 min read 27. Jan 9, 2026 United States Practice operations ### [After-hours calls are an invisible cost for US practices](https://www.getarbol.com/en/blog/after-hours-calls-practice-cost/) Evening and weekend phone demand rarely hits a dashboard. CMS access rules and MGMA polls show why that silent gap still taxes next week's schedule. Samuel Giraldo 11 min read ## Let’s look at your population in Arbol. A 30-minute video call with our team, using your cases: your contract, your patients and your channels. You leave with a first read of your population, your contract and your utilization rates. [Book a demo](https://cal.com/tomas-giraldo-pdfbl9/30-min-arbol-ai-demo) [Message us on WhatsApp](https://wa.me/573185230045?text=Hello%2C%20I%27d%20like%20to%20learn%20more%20about%20Arbol%20for%20my%20organization.) [**Colombia**](https://www.getarbol.com/en/colombia/), in operation · Built for Latin America --- **Arbol AI** — AI agents for clinics and healthcare providers: they answer and reach patients by phone, WhatsApp, SMS, email and web chat, book their appointments 24/7 and keep a record of every conversation. - Original page: - Book a demo: · Pricing: - Agent index: · Support: