Unless Congress passes the Telehealth Modernization Act of 2024, or any number of similar bills currently waiting in Congress, all Medicare patients will lose access to nearly all medical telehealth services (with very limited exceptions) starting January 1, 2025.

Medicare provides insurance to nearly 1 in 5 people in the United States, all of whom are either over the age of 65 or younger disabled people. That is to say, Medicare provides coverage to those who both more frequently need medical care, and often face both physical and systemic barriers to doing so. Telehealth is critical for increasing access to medical care for these vulnerable populations.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1 in 4 telehealth appointments are made by a patient on Medicare. Increased telehealth access has made a significant difference since it was expanded in 2020, and there is no reason to take it away, especially from vulnerable populations.

To learn more about this issue, check out this recent article from Mother Jones.