The American Hospital Association sent a letter to Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, the Administrator of CMS, urging her to ensure continued access to remote prescribing for controlled substances.
Six things to know:
- During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Drug Enforcement Administration temporarily relaxed certain regulations to allow healthcare providers to prescribe specific controlled substances via telehealth. This included stimulant medications for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety medications, and medications for opioid use disorder, among others. Notably, the DEA also removed the requirement for an in-person visit prior to prescribing these controlled substances.
- In October 2023, the DEA extended this flexibility until the end of 2024.
- In a Oct. 4 letter, the AHA said it is concerned that with the expiration date approaching, the DEA, in collaboration with HHS, has not yet established rules to either extend the current waiver or create a permanent framework for telemedicine prescribing of controlled substances, as required by Congress.
- The AHA is urging the agency to prolong the waiver of the in-person visit requirement for prescribing controlled substances, granting the DEA at least two additional years to finalize the rule.
- "This will prevent harmful interruptions in the delivery of necessary patient care dependent on continued virtual prescribing of controlled substances without a prior in-person evaluation and ensure adequate time for rulemaking to establish a permanent pathway," the AHA wrote.
- Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, patients needed at least one in-person visit to receive controlled substances.