Trending in Telehealth highlights state legislative and regulatory developments that impact the healthcare providers, telehealth and digital health companies, pharmacists and technology companies that deliver and facilitate the delivery of virtual care.

Trending in the past week:

• Interstate compacts
• Behavioral health
• Expanding telehealth

A CLOSER LOOK

Legislation & Rulemaking Activity in Proposal Phase

Highlights:

• Florida progressed SB 7016, which expands the telehealth minority maternity care pilot program to a statewide program; enacts the interstate medical licensure compact; and enacts the audiology and speech-language pathology interstate compact.
• Oklahoma proposed a rule to include the use of telemedicine within the optometrist’s scope of practice under certain circumstances and clarify medication dispensation and storage requirements.
• South Dakota progressed HB 1015 to adopt the social work licensure compact.
• Texas proposed rule to expand the existing Department of Health’s Emergency Medical Care rules by providing telemedicine options in non-rural counties and expanding the use of telemedicine in rural counties, by integrating the use of telemedicine by Advanced Practice Provider (APP) in Rural Level IV trauma facilities under certain circumstances.
• Utah progressed HB 44 to adopt the social work licensure compact.
• Wisconsin proposed a rule to amend current standards of practice for supervising physical therapist assistants to incorporate new telehealth practices. Specifically, the current supervision rules require supervision physical therapists to provide on-site assessment and reevaluation of each patient at least once each calendar month or every 10th treatment day, whichever is sooner, while new telehealth practices permit patients to receive treatments using telehealth. The new rule will resolve the conflict between the on-site assessment and reevaluation requirements for supervision and patients’ ability to schedule telehealth visits.
• Wisconsin progressed AB 573 and AB 541to the second chamber. AB 573 directs the Department of Health Services to establish a pilot program to implement virtual behavioral health crisis care services for use by county or municipal law enforcement agencies in the field to connect law enforcement officers who encounter persons in crisis to behavioral healthcare services. AB 541 provides that no mental health care provider may be required to be licensed, registered, certified, or otherwise approved to practice in the state to provide mental health services by telehealth to patients located in the state unless mental health care provider satisfies certain conditions.

Why it matters:

• There continues to be elevated activity surrounding licensure compacts. This week, Florida, South Dakota and Utah progressed laws to adopt interstate licensure compacts.
• States continue to progress laws to incorporate the use of telehealth in practitioners’ scope of practice. This week, several states progressed legislation expanding practitioners’ scope of practice to include telehealth services under certain circumstances.