Dive Brief:
- Legislative action to enhance the use of telemedicine seems to have run aground in both Florida and Tennessee.
- In Florida, Republican Gov. Rick Scott vetoed a bill which would fund three hospital telemedicine projects to the tune of $1,750,000 overall.
- In Tennessee, meanwhile, some legislators are arguing that telemedicine could make ongoing problems with overprescribing controlled substances worse. Others argue that it poses a barrier to patient-physician relationships.
Dive Insight:
While state and federal regulations on telemedicine remain bogged down, medical organizations are moving ahead with guidelines of their own. For example, the Federation of State Medical Boards adopted a model telemedicine policy in April. Hospitals are increasingly making use of eICU programs which bring critical care expertise to hospitals that lack such capabilities. And private commercial enterprises such as American Well and Doctor on Demand are rolling out direct-to-consumer telemedicine services. It seems inevitable that state and federal lawmakers will have to catch up with all this activity — it's just a matter of time.