Reps Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Expand Telehealth Benefits

Last week, six US House representatives announced the introduction of the Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act, a piece of bipartisan legislation that aims to provide American workers with access to employer-sponsored telehealth benefits.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many options for in-person healthcare became temporarily unavailable. As a result, the government enacted flexibilities that allowed for more widespread telehealth use by removing several restrictions, including geographic and originating site restrictions, and expanding coverage, like Medicare coverage for audio-only telehealth.

Even though in-person healthcare services have resumed, telehealth remains a popular option. A survey released last November shows that 82 percent of US adults with employer-provided healthcare coverage believe that the federal government extending telehealth flexibilities to maintain care access is important. Additionally, 65 percent of the survey respondents reported being likely to consider seeing a doctor or receiving treatment through telehealth.

Introduced by Representatives Suzan DelBene (WA-01), Tim Walberg (MI-07), Angie Craig (MN-02), Ron Estes (KS-04), Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11), and Rick Allen (GA-12), the Telehealth Benefit for Workers Act aims to ensure telehealth access. The bipartisan bill allows employers to offer workers standalone telehealth benefits.

The standalone telehealth benefits would operate similarly to dental and vision benefits, remaining separate from traditional healthcare plans. It would also apply to all workers, even those who work part-time or seasonally.

“The pandemic revealed how telehealth is a critical tool to ensure that Americans can receive timely, quality, and affordable care from their own home,” said Walberg in a press release. “Expanding telehealth services will help ensure that Americans have improved access to health care, especially in underserved areas."

Representatives also noted that although the federal government allowed workers to access standalone telehealth during the pandemic, President Biden’s recent announcement regarding the end of the public health emergency on May 11 may jeopardize benefits unless Congress acts.

“Even as businesses return to more in-person work, we should not turn our backs on successful telehealth programs that benefited workers in Washington state and across the country,” said DelBene, in a press release. “Everyone – regardless of where they live – should be able to access quality care when and where they need it. The Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act is an important step toward modernizing our health care system to ensure patients can connect with their health care providers from the comfort of their homes on their own schedule.”

As the public health emergency comes to a close, lawmakers are working to determine which telehealth flexibilities should be made permanent.

Pandemic-era telehealth policy received a boost in December 2022 with the release of a year-end package that included two-year extensions for Medicare telehealth flexibilities that began during the pandemic, along with the Acute Hospital Care at Home Program.

This package extended various flexibilities, such as allowing Medicare beneficiaries to obtain services regardless of location and enabling federally qualified health centers and rural health centers to continue billing for telehealth practices. But these waivers will expire on Dec. 31, 2024, unless permanent telehealth legislation is passed.