WASHINGTON — The Advancing Telehealth Beyond COVID-19 Act of 2021, introduced by Congresswomen Liz Cheney, R-WY, and Debbie Dingell, D-MI, passed a vote in the House yesterday, which will make it easier for individuals to access remote healthcare.
First introduced by Rep. Cheney in June 2020, the bill, H.R. 4040, received bipartisan support with a vote of 416-12. Telehealth services for Medicare beneficiaries were initially expanded in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency, and this bill will ensure that these critical services extend through Dec. 31, 2024.
“Because many of our citizens in Wyoming live hours and hundreds of miles away from their closest medical provider, we have long-known how important it is for citizens to be able to take advantage of telehealth services in order to interact with their doctors and health care providers,” Cheney said. “This legislation, which I have been proud to work on for over two years, will expand telehealth capabilities by removing geographic requirements. It also expands originating sites so Medicare beneficiaries have better access to care, can obtain care from more practitioners and can receive audio-only telehealth.”
This expansion not only improves healthcare access for rural residents, but it is particularly helpful for seniors, since traveling to a doctor’s office might be a prohibitive barrier. It also allows mental health services to be provided for up to six months without an in-person meeting, and the audio-only services ensure that everyone can receive proper care, regardless of internet connectivity.
