Preserving Telehealth

Many U.S. telehealth benefits are set to expire shortly at the end of this year (December 31, 2024). With this email campaign, you can simply fill out your information and it will automatically send an email to your congressman asking for telehealth to be extended. You can also add your personal story if you wish.

An email can sometimes work better than petitions since Congress hears directly from you.

Millions of disabled Americans rely on these services for doctors appointments, prescriptions, and other medical needs. For many of us, this is not just a convenience, but a matter of life and death. Some patients do not have specialists for their disease located in their area. If they cannot travel, they must rely on telehealth. For many patients, leaving home at all is detrimental to health and even possibly fatal.

A group of bipartisan lawmakers have called on the DEA to issue a two-year extension of telemedicine benefits, first put in place in 2020. These bills are related to Medicare but are expected to affect telehealth access through private insurance indirectly, as private plans tend to follow Medicare when setting coverage.

We need Congress to act quickly on these bills and also provide an emergency extension to preserve medical help for those in need.

Thank you for your help!

We are asking Congress to pass the following four bills as well as provide an emergency extension:

H.R. 8261 Preserving Telehealth, Hospital, and Ambulance Access Act

H.R. 7623 Telehealth Modernization Act of 2024

Summary from congress.gov:

This bill modifies requirements relating to coverage of telehealth services under Medicare.

Specifically, the bill permanently extends certain flexibilities that were initially authorized during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19. Among other things, the bill allows (1) rural health clinics and federally qualified health centers to serve as the distant site (i.e., the location of the health care practitioner); (2) the home of a beneficiary to serve as the originating site (i.e., the location of the beneficiary) for all services (rather than for only certain services); and (3) all types of practitioners to furnish telehealth services, as determined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

H.R.4189 Connect for Health Act of 2023

Summary from congress.gov:

This bill expands coverage of telehealth services under Medicare.

Among other provisions, the bill

• permanently removes geographic restrictions on originating sites (i.e., the location of the beneficiary) and allows the home of the beneficiary to serve as the originating site for all services;

• permanently allows federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics to serve as the distant site (i.e., the location of the health care practitioner); and

• allows the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to generally waive coverage restrictions during any public health emergency.

Additionally, the CMS must post certain information about the effects of Medicare telehealth services on its website, including information about utilization, costs, and the outcome of services. The CMS must also (1) provide resources to health care professionals about the requirements for furnishing telehealth services under Medicare, including with respect to payment, patient privacy, and support for underserved populations; and (2) ensure certain quality measures are applied to telehealth services.

S.2016 Connect for Health Act of 2023

Summary from congress.gov:

This bill expands coverage of telehealth services under Medicare.

Among other provisions, the bill

• permanently removes geographic restrictions on originating sites (i.e., the location of the beneficiary) and allows the home of the beneficiary to serve as the originating site for all services;

• permanently allows federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics to serve as the distant site (i.e., the location of the health care practitioner); and

• allows the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to generally waive coverage restrictions during any public health emergency.

Additionally, the CMS must post certain information about the effects of Medicare telehealth services on its website, including information about utilization, costs, and the outcome of services. The CMS must also (1) provide resources to health care professionals about the requirements for furnishing telehealth services under Medicare, including with respect to payment, patient privacy, and support for underserved populations; and (2) ensure certain quality measures are applied to telehealth services.