The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), in concert with other federal agencies, has taken various steps in the past few months to strengthen a practitioner’s ability to prescribe controlled substances via telemedicine, a...more
On January 17, 2025, the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published two rules regarding telemedicine prescribing of controlled substances: a proposed rule...more
On October 10, 2023, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) published another temporary rule extending the COVID-era telemedicine flexibilities that allow physicians and other prescribers to prescribe controlled substances...more
This week, the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), in conjunction with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (“SAMHSA”), issued a temporary rule extending the telemedicine waivers of the Ryan...more
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced its plan to end the Federal Public Health Emergency (PHE) for COVID-19 on May 11, 2023. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, emergency declarations, legislation, and...more
Telehealth practitioners must take note of the DEA’s proposed rule making that would impact the way telehealth practitioners can prescribe controlled substances. The Ryan Haight Act and the Proposed Rules-...more
Less than one month after the Biden administration’s announcement on January 20, 2023, declaring the end of the public health emergency (PHE) on May 11, 2023, the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has announced...more
After three years, the federal public health emergency (PHE) will expire May 11, 2023. Most of the relaxed regulatory and payor standards will end on or within a few months after the deadline, including many relating to: ...more
On February 24, 2023, the Drug Enforcement Agency (“DEA”) announced a new proposed rule, which provides some much-anticipated guidance related to the implications of telemedicine prescribing under Ryan Haight Act of 2008...more
On February 24, 2023, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) issued a pair of proposed rules to make permanent certain “telemedicine flexibilities” related to the prescribing of controlled substances via telehealth...more
On January 30, 2023, the Biden Administration announced its intent to end the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) on May 11, 2023. The PHE has been in place for over three years during which time many telehealth and...more
The COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE), which was originally declared nearly three years ago, has been renewed through April 2023. As we’ve previously covered, the PHE allowed federal and state regulators to relax certain...more
The COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (“PHE”) led to a rapid expansion in the utilization of telehealth. Now, almost three years later, governmental entities have focused their attention on telehealth services and the...more
Starting January 1, 2023, Medicare will cover telehealth-based treatment services delivered by federally-accredited opioid treatment programs (OTPs), commonly referred to as “methadone clinics.” This new reimbursement is...more
DEA waivers regarding the Ryan Haight Act could play a major role in telehealth’s future. In the first decade of the 21st century, deaths attributable to overdoses of prescription drugs saw an alarming spike in volume,...more
What is the Telehealth Extension and Evaluation Act? The Telehealth Extension and Evaluation Act would establish a two-year extension for certain COVID-19 emergency telehealth waivers. The legislation aims to extend the...more
Massachusetts has a new telehealth law on the books, signed into law by Governor Charlie Baker as part of a comprehensive healthcare bill. The telehealth provisions constitute only a portion of the 70-page legislation, but...more
...Our prior article discussed federal law barriers to entry for the use of telehealth in substance use disorder (SUD), and specifically, opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment, and highlighted notable opportunities to use...more
...As COVID-19 cases spread across the U.S., another public health issue continues to escalate: the rise of opioid-related overdose deaths. For patients with a substance use disorder (SUD), the pandemic has increased feelings...more
When Alex Azar, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (“DHHS”), declared a national emergency on January 31, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, he triggered an exception to the “in-person...more
The Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) has waived the in-person examination requirement for prescribing controlled substances via telemedicine in the wake of COVID-19, relaxing the prescribing requirements under the...more
Updated March 27, 2020 with new direction from Governor Reynolds about telehealth reimbursement. On March 16, 2020, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) removed the requirement that providers must conduct an in-person...more
A waiver granted by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) may provide a solution for long term care providers with opioid-addicted residents who are unable to access medication-assisted treatment (MAT) due to...more
With the rapid spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the looming possibility of large scale isolations and quarantines, lawmakers continue to demonstrate willingness to expand access to telehealth to combat...more
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Drug Enforcement Agency (“DEA”) recently issued guidance permitting the use of telemedicine to prescribe controlled substances (schedule II to V) for the duration of the public health...more