Dive Brief:
- Three separate healthcare industry groups have written letters to a House subcommittee asking lawmakers to update "out-of-date" reimbursement and licensing policies for telemedicine.
- The groups, which include the American Telemedicine Association, Health IT Now and the Telecommunications Industry Association, are asking members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Health to rethink current telemedicine regs to help increase patient access to these services.
- The ATA and Health IT Now are pushing for passage of new legislation that would let Medicare providers practice across state borders without getting an additional license; the Telecommunications Industry Association is asking Congress to boost investments in telehealth and update telehealth licensing policies.
Dive Insight:
The letters from these groups come as part of a broad healthcare industry push to bring telemedicine policies and practices up to date. Not only are these groups putting their stake in the ground, provider champions such as the AMA are making their own proposals. If Congress pays attention to the industry's requests, it seems likely we'll see some changes to telehealth laws and regs that will help such services flourish.