Telehealth Flexibilities Archives

Trending in Telehealth is a series from the McDermott digital health team in which we highlight state legislative and regulatory developments that impact healthcare providers, telehealth and digital health companies, pharmacists, and technology companies that deliver and facilitate virtual care.
Trending in the past week:

Forensic Examinations
Telehealth Flexibilities

A CLOSER LOOK
Finalized Legislation and Rulemaking

Florida passed legislation (SB 218) amending Fla. Stat. Ann. § 456.47 to revise the definition of “telehealth provider” to include persons licensed as genetic counselors. By way of background, in 2021, the Florida legislature created a new licensed and regulated profession—genetic counseling. SB 218 is likely one of several pieces of legislation that will incorporate the newly created profession into existing regulatory frameworks.
Minnesota enacted legislation (SF 2744) allowing telehealth to factor into the network adequacy assessments required to be performed by health carriers under Minnesota’s insurance laws. Minnesota also enacted appropriations legislation (SF 2995) that, among other things, allocates money for a study of telehealth expansion and payment parity in 2024.
Nevada passed legislation (AB 276) amending Nev. Rev. Stat. § 629.515 to authorize a provider who is conducting certain forensic medical examinations on an apparent victim of sexual assault or strangulation to use telehealth to connect to an appropriately trained physician, physician assistant or registered nurse to obtain instructions and guidance on conducting the examination.
West Virginia’s legislation requiring hospitals to have a trained healthcare provider available, or transfer agreement as provided in a county plan, to complete a sexual assault forensic examination (SB 89) became effective May 21, 2023, 90 days after its passage. “Available” includes having access to a trained sexual assault forensic examination expert via telehealth.

Legislation and Rulemaking Activity in Proposal Phase
Highlights:

Illinois progressed legislation (SB 2123) in the second chamber that would adopt the Counseling Compact.
Texas continued to progress legislation (HB 1771) in the second chamber that would require that each agency with regulatory authority over a health professional providing a telemedicine medical service, teledentistry or telehealth to adopt rules necessary to standardize formats for and retention of records related to a patient’s consent to treatment, data collection and data sharing.
Texas also progressed legislation (HB 617) in the second chamber that would establish a pilot project to provide emergency medical services instruction and emergency prehospital care instruction through a telemedicine medical service or telehealth service provided by regional trauma resource centers to healthcare providers in rural trauma facilities and emergency medical services providers in rural areas.

Why it matters:

Telehealth capabilities can reduce disparities in forensic examinations. States continue to progress legislation aiming to decrease disparities in the quality of forensic examinations by providing expert, live, interactive quality control and evidence-based methodologies to less experienced providers. Proponents argue that partnering on-site staff with telehealth [...]

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Trending in the past week:

Interstate Compacts
Telehealth Flexibilities

A CLOSER LOOK

Finalized Legislation & Rulemaking

The North Carolina General Assembly voted to override Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of SB 20. Dubbed the Care for Women, Children, and Families Act, SB 20 operates to reduce access to reproductive health services, including by eliminating the provider’s ability to give patients information contained in the relevant consent form over the telephone. The legislation takes effect July 1.

Legislation and Rulemaking Activity in Proposal Phase

Highlights:

Alaska progressed legislation (SB 75) in the first chamber to join the Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology Interstate Compact.
Illinois progressed legislation (SB 2123) in the first chamber to adopt the Counseling Compact.
Oregon progressed legislation (SB 232) that would update the Oregon Medical Board’s telemedicine regulations at 52 O.R.S. §§ 677.080 and 677.137 to clarify that the practice of medicine occurs where a patient is physically located.
Texas continued to progress legislation (HB 1771) that would require each agency with regulatory authority over a health professional providing a telemedicine, teledentistry or telehealth to adopt rules to standardize formats for and retention of records related to a patient’s consent to treatment, data collection and data sharing.
Texas also progressed legislation (HB 617) in the first chamber that would establish a pilot project to provide emergency medical and prehospital care instruction through telemedicine/telehealth services by regional trauma resource centers to healthcare providers in rural area trauma facilities.

Why it matters:

Interstate compact adoption remains elevated. States continue to progress legislation that would enact licensure compacts across healthcare professions. This week, Alaska and Illinois took steps to adopt compacts that would ease out-of-state licensure hurdles and improve shared systems across public agencies.
Texas addresses rural care via telehealth. Many states are progressing legislation that would permanently extend telehealth flexibilities to allow providers to practice across counties and use technologies to reach and educate patients in rural low-access areas.

Telehealth is an important development in care delivery, but the regulatory patchwork is complicated. The McDermott digital health team works alongside the industry’s leading providers, payors and technology innovators to help them enter new markets, break down barriers to delivering accessible care and mitigate enforcement risk through proactive compliance. Are you working to make healthcare more accessible through telehealth? Let us help you transform telehealth.