Resources & Reports

In December 2024, the Rural Telehealth Research Center (RTRC) released a Research and Policy Brief titled, The Role of Relaxed Telehealth Policy on Health Equity in Telehealth Utilization and Outcomes During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency: A Living Systematic Review. The brief underscores the significant telehealth policy changes that have occurred since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic as the foundation for enabling the ability to better understand the variety of implications of increased telehealth use, such as access to care, health outcomes, and cost. For this study in particular, the RTRC sought to conduct a systematic review of the ways in which telehealth has been shown to address health disparities.

As we prepare to enter another new year, CCHP offers a reminder of recent and upcoming resources to clarify the current status of telehealth policy across the country. Wishing a Happy New Year to all the Telehealth Policy Enthusiasts out there!

CCHP’s year end telehealth update is here! This newsletter includes the following topics – Medicare Telehealth Flexibilities at Risk of Expiration: What You Need to Know; DEA Extends Telehealth Controlled Substance Allowances Through 2025; VA Expands Telehealth Access for Rural Veterans; Telehealth and Medicaid Updates in the New Hospital Outpatient Payment Rule; Supreme Court to Decide on FCC’s Universal Service Fund; Joint Commission 2025 National Patient Safety Goals for Telehealth; Latest Developments in CCHP’s Telehealth Policy Finder and Policy Trend Map; Telehealth Use Among Adults with Diabetes. 

As December 31, 2024 quickly approaches, those in the telehealth community, as well as those who receive services via telehealth, may begin to wonder if the federal waivers regarding Medicare telehealth policies will again be extended, or if they will come to an end once the clock hits midnight. As of the writing of this newsletter, no one is absolutely certain what will happen in the coming weeks. Just after the Presidential election in early November, there were some indications that the waiver deadline may pass without any Congressional action taken to extend the waivers, as talk on Capitol Hill seemed to indicate a desire to wait until the new Congress was installed in 2025 before any major policy decisions were made. However, in recent weeks there have been rumors that an extension might be passed before the December 31 deadline.

As 2024 draws to a close, the Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP) is releasing its annual roundup of state telehealth legislation. This year, state legislatures continued to refine, expand, and impose new standards on telehealth, responding to evolving needs in healthcare delivery and leveraging lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. Notably, increasingly specific requirements for various telehealth modalities, including remote patient monitoring and audio-only services, demonstrate states’ efforts to ensure telehealth remains accessible and aligns with high standards of care.