Overview of the COVID-19 Telehealth Program

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By Cory Talbot

As part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act, Congress appropriated $200 million in funding for the COVID-19 Telehealth Program (the “Program”). The Program, administered through the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”), is designed to help health care providers deliver connected care services to patients at their homes or mobile locations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The FCC began accepting applications for the Program earlier this month.

What is the Program?

The Program will distribute emergency funding to health care providers to increase telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic. The FCC indicates that the Program will support participating health care providers “by fully funding their telecommunications services, information services, and devices necessary to provide critical connected care services” during the COVID-19 pandemic.1 Funds can be used to cover eligible equipment or services purchased on or after March 13, 2020, including services with monthly recurring charges, such as broadband connectivity or remote patient monitoring devices, through September 30, 2020. The FCC has set an award ceiling of $1 million per applicant. Read more

Telehealth and COVID-19

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By Kim Stanger

Federal Action. To promote the use of telehealth in response to Coronavirus, the federal government took several significant steps this week:

  • Medicare dramatically expanded the telehealth services for which it will pay.
  • HHS suspended HIPAA security rule requirements that may have otherwise limited the technology used for telehealth visits. As a result, providers are free to use non-public facing applications such as FaceTime, Skype, Facebook Messenger, Google Hangouts, etc., to conduct telehealth visits. They should not use public-facing applications such as Facebook Live, Twitch, TikTok, etc.
  • HHS suspended the HIPAA rule that would require the distribution of a Notice of Privacy Practices at the time of service.
  • The DEA now allows registered practitioners to issue prescriptions for all schedule II-V controlled substances to patients for whom they have not conducted an in-person medical evaluation, provided all of the following conditions are met: (i) the prescription is issued for a legitimate medical purpose by a practitioner acting in the usual course of his/her professional practice; (ii) the telemedicine communication is conducted using an audio-visual, real-time, two-way interactive communication system; and (iii) the practitioner is acting in accordance with applicable federal and state laws.

State Action. Importantly, the federal actions do not remove state law limits on telehealth. Many states impose licensure, technology, consent, or other procedural requirements. Unless waived by state agencies, these state laws must also be considered before launching telehealth services. Read more

Telehealth: Practicing Across the Idaho Border

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by Kim Stanger

More healthcare practitioners are using telehealth to render patient care or expand their practices. When telehealth crosses state borders, the practitioner must ensure that he or she is licensed in or otherwise authorized to practice medicine in the state where the patient resides. The Model Policy issued by the Federation of State Medical Boards states:

A physician must be licensed, or under the jurisdiction, of the medical board of the state where the patient is located. The practice of medicine occurs where the patient is located at the time telemedicine technologies are used. Physicians who treat or prescribe through online services sites are practicing medicine and must possess appropriate licensure in all jurisdictions where patients receive care.

(Model Policy for the Appropriate Use of Telemedicine Technologies in the Practice of Medicine (2014), available here).

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