Telehealth providers can celebrate another successful year of growth, as CMS reported a 28% increase over total 2016 payments for telehealth services under the Medicare program. Providers continue to successfully integrate...more
Alaska’s Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development has finalized new regulations to create a special Telemedicine Business Registry for health care providers delivering telemedicine services in the Frontier...more
New Jersey has a new telemedicine law, recently signed by Governor Chris Christie. The law cements the validity of telehealth services in the Garden State, establishes telemedicine practice standards, and imposes telehealth...more
8/11/2017
/ Consent ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Managed Care Contracts ,
Medicaid ,
Medical Records ,
Prescribing Authority ,
Standard of Care ,
Telehealth ,
Telemedicine
For what may be the first time, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) at the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) recently announced a new project to review Medicare payments for telehealth services. Accordingly,...more
Vermont health care providers and patients can now enjoy a revamped, and significantly improved, telehealth commercial insurance coverage law. Vermont Governor Phil Scott signed S. 50 into law on June 7, 2017, expanding...more
Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin recently signed into law SB 726, establishing new telemedicine practice standards, including explicitly allowing doctors to create valid physician-patient relationships via telemedicine without...more
Indiana has taken another step towards expanding the meaningful use of telemedicine in connection with clinical services and prescribing. HB 1337, signed by Governor Eric Holcomb and effective July 1, 2017, will allow...more
The Legislation implementing the medical marijuana amendment Florida voters approved last fall is on its way to the Governor. On June 9, 2017, during a special session, the Florida Legislature passed SB 8A and SB 6A,...more
On May 12, 2017, the Texas State Legislature passed SB 1107, a law expanding the use of telemedicine in the Lone Star State. The bill is now on its way to Governor Abbot’s desk where he is expected to sign it into law....more
Editor’s Note: This article is the second in a series addressing telemedicine prescribing and controlled substances, designed to give some much needed practical guidance and orientation to established healthcare providers,...more
4/18/2017
/ Controlled Substances ,
DEA ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Veterans Affairs ,
Exemptions ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitals ,
Medical Emergencies ,
Native American Issues ,
Physicians ,
Prescribing Authority ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Ryan Haight Act ,
Telemedicine ,
Veterans
Editor’s Note: This article is the first of a series addressing telemedicine prescribing and controlled substances, designed to give some much needed practical guidance and orientation to established health care providers,...more
More good news for hospitals, health care providers, and entrepreneurs interested in telehealth and Chronic Care Management (CCM). CMS just recently introduced a new educational initiative called Connected Care: the Chronic...more
The Joint Commission, which accredits hospitals and other health care organizations, recently announced it will not permit hospitals and other health care organizations to use secure text messaging platforms to transmit...more
The U.S. Department of Agriculture just announced new grant funding awarded to seven telemedicine and 11 distance learning projects across 16 states to use technology to expand access to health care, substance misuse...more
South Carolina Governor, Nikki Haley signed the South Carolina Telemedicine Act (S.B. 1035) into law, on June 3, 2016, establishing new telemedicine practice standards in the Palmetto State. Prior to the Act, the controlling...more
Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) announced, on July 27, 2016, the appointments of 13 representatives to the newly-created Florida Telehealth Advisory Council. The Telehealth Council was created through...more
The Joint Commission, which accredits hospitals and other health care organizations, hit pause on its prior May 2016 announcement to allow secure text messaging in hospitals and other health care organizations. The use of...more
Rhode Island marks the 31st state to enact a telemedicine commercial reimbursement statute. The Telemedicine Coverage Act (HB 7160B) was signed into law by Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo on June 28, 2016, representing a...more
Foley Partner Nathaniel Lacktman, head of the firm’s telemedicine and virtual care practice, participated in a comprehensive Q&A discussing the challenges and opportunities facing the telehealth market with Healthcare...more
Louisiana’s governor signed into law, HB 570, (the “Act”), eliminating a prior requirement that physicians practicing telemedicine maintain an office in Louisiana or contract with in-state providers. The Act also changes the...more
6/30/2016
/ Disclosure Requirements ,
Electronic Prescribing ,
Electronic Records ,
Health Care Providers ,
Informed Consent ,
Medical Examiners ,
New Legislation ,
Physicians ,
Standard of Care ,
Telehealth ,
Telemedicine ,
Venue
New York introduced a new bill designed to ensure commercial health plans pay for telehealth services at the same rate the plans pay for in-person services. The legislation, SB 7953, comes on the heels of New York’s...more
Arizona Governor Doug Ducey signed a bill (S.B. 1363) into law, on May 17, 2016, requiring private health plans to pay for telemedicine services across the whole state rather than only services received in rural areas of the...more
Virginia has made strides to expand the telehealth offerings available to its residents and the Old Dominion took another step forward advancing telemedicine when it enacted a bill amending Virginia Code § 38.2-3418.16 to...more
4/14/2016
/ Controlled Substances ,
Data Security ,
Electronic Medical Records ,
Electronic Prescribing ,
Health Care Providers ,
Informed Consent ,
Licensing Rules ,
New Legislation ,
Physicians ,
State Medical Board ,
Telehealth ,
Telemedicine
West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin (D) signed into law, on March 24, 2016, a new bill (House Bill No. 4463) implementing a variety of telemedicine practice standards and remote prescribing rules in the Mountain State....more
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) signed into law, on March 21, 2016, a new bill (House Act No. 1263) implementing a variety of telemedicine practice standards and remote prescribing rules in the Hoosier State. Effective July 1,...more