Six U.S. Senators on May 3 introduced bipartisan legislation to expand telehealth and remote patient monitoring services to Medicare patients.
The Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies for Health Act of 2017 aims to increase the use of virtual healthcare services in community health centers, rural health clinics and in populations with chronic conditions and mental illnesses. The bill would also lift many existing telehealth restrictions, including those related to originating site, geographic location and covered codes.
Sens. Brian Schatz (D.-Hawaii), Roger Wicker (R.-Miss.), Thad Cochran (R.-Miss.), Ben Cardin (D.-Md.), John Thune (R.-S.D.), and Mark Warner (D.-Va.) introduced the bill, nicknamed the CONNECT for Health Act of 2017.
More than 50 organizations have voiced their support for the CONNECT for Health Act of 2017, including the American Medical Association, the American Telemedicine Association and the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society.
Click here to view the full bill.