“Telehealth Trends” focuses on state legislative and regulatory developments that impact healthcare providers, telehealth and digital health companies, pharmacists and technology companies involved in delivering and facilitating virtual care.
Past week trends:
- Interstate Compact
- Professional Standards
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Final legislation and rulemaking:
- in FloridaThe Governor signed Bill H 7021, which amends the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Act to allow individuals to receive treatment via telehealth if law enforcement officials determine a mandatory test is necessary.
- Colorado SB 24-141 was enacted to allow health care regulatory agencies to create a telehealth registration process for out-of-state providers. Regulatory agencies must create a registration process, but applicants must be eligible for registration if they (i) hold an unrestricted out-of-state credential issued by another state that has education and supervision standards equal to or exceeding those of Colorado or that holds an interstate compact license, (ii) have a service representative in Colorado, (iii) have not been subject to disciplinary action within the past five years, and (iv) have passed a jurisprudence examination.
Proposed Legislative and Rulemaking Activities:
highlight:
- Rhode Island It was a very active week for Compact bills. If signed by the Governor, Rhode Island will join the following states:
- Social Worker Licensure Agreement (SB 2184)
- Counseling Agreements (SB 2183)
- Interstate Compact on Speech-Language-Hearing Therapy (SB 2173)
- Occupational Therapist Licensure Compact (SB 2623)
- of Ohio The Senate also passed SB 28, which would bring the state into the PA Licensing Compact.
- Arizona The bill, SB 1036, would establish the social services compact and will head to the governor’s desk.
- Arizona Also passed by both houses was SB 1267, a bill amending supervision requirements for physical therapist assistants to allow for supervision via telehealth.
- of Delaware The Senate passed SB 301, a bill that would require public universities to provide access to abortion pills and emergency contraception, including requiring them to accommodate students’ requests for telehealth appointments if their student health centers are not equipped or staffed to provide the medications.
Why is this important:
- Interstate compacts continue to expandTelehealth-related legislation and rulemaking was relatively slow this week, with the exception of state compact registries. States continue to pass compact-related legislation, with Rhode Island leading the way with four bills passed in both houses this week. Additionally, as we saw last week, states are amending their statutes and regulations to accommodate compact providers. This can be seen in Colorado’s new telehealth registry under SB 24-141, the final version of which was amended from the original bill text to include compact providers.
- Telehealth plays an important role in program guidance. States continue to amend rules and statutes related to various healthcare programs to account for the use of telehealth. Ohio’s recently passed rules for home health services clearly state the differences in documentation required for telehealth or virtual visits. Delaware’s pending bill, SB 301, will also leverage telehealth when certain healthcare providers are unable to accommodate certain services, expanding access to certain specialty care. In this case, medical abortion at public universities. As states work on telehealth-based solutions, they are shifting toward putting technology first when drafting new healthcare programs, rather than amending rules to play catch-up.
