ICYMI: MATSUI AND COLLEAGUES CALL ON CONGRESSIONAL LEADERSHIP TO EXTEND TELEHEALTH ACCESS FOR SENIORS

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congresswoman Doris Matsui (D-CA), Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA), Congressman David Schweikert (R-AZ), Congressman Troy Balderson (R-OH), and Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) led a letter signed by 100 Members of Congress and Senators to House and Senate leadership urging them to extend telehealth coverage benefits so that all Medicare beneficiaries retain access to these services.

Without an extension by December 31, seniors on Medicare would lose access to critical telehealth services.

"The benefits are clear - telehealth makes it easier for patients to pick up the phone, follow through on their appointments, and seek care sooner. That's why the expansion of telehealth services has been crucial for reaching our most vulnerable patients," said Congresswoman Matsui. "Removing barriers to telehealth has expanded access and improved the quality of care for Medicare beneficiaries - and we cannot afford to take any steps back. We have a nation relying on these services. That's why my colleagues and I are working hard to ensure that Americans continue to have access to convenient, quality health care that's right for them, when and where they need it."

"Since my days in the California State Senate, I've been a big believer in telehealth's ability to save money, time, and lives," said Congressman Thompson. "Telehealth allows patients-especially those with low mobility or who otherwise can't make it to the doctor's office-to access the care they need when they need it. Expanding Americans' access to vital telehealth services just makes sense."

"Technology is critical in expanding access to care for not only Arizonans, but for citizens across the United States," said Congressman Schweikert. "Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth provided effective, affordable, and accommodating means of care. Telehealth is by far the most moral and bipartisan method of providing access to care, and we owe it to our everyday health heroes, physicians, and patients to ensure this resource is always available."

"Telehealth services have proven to be essential for our rural communities," said Congressman Balderson. "For many folks in rural and Appalachian Ohio, access to quality health care has long been a major challenge. With the technology we have today, we are able to improve health outcomes in our most underserved areas and finally close the urban-rural divide. It is critical for Congress to act and ensure federal support for telehealth services continues into 2025."

A Co-Chair of the Congressional Telehealth Caucus, Congresswoman Matsui is a longtime champion of telehealth and improving access to care. She authored the Telemental Health Expansion Act, which permanently added mental health to the definition of Medicare-covered telehealth services, waived the geographic and originating site requirements for mental health provided through telehealth, and allowed Medicare beneficiaries to access these services at home. Congresswoman Matsui also introduced the Telemental Health Care Access Act, which would repeal the requirement that Medicare patients be seen in person before receiving virtual behavioral health care.

A copy of the letter can be found below and HERE.

Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Speaker Johnson, and Minority Leader Jeffries:

Expanded Medicare coverage for telehealth services is set to expire on December 31, 2024. As you work to advance a year-end appropriations package, we urge you to extend coverage as much as possible so that all Medicare beneficiaries retain access to these services.

Telehealth plays a critical role in health care delivery - a fact that Congress has recognized by expanding coverage during and after the COVID-19 public health emergency. Most recently, in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Congress enacted a two-year extension of Medicare telehealth services coverage. Committees of jurisdiction in the House of Representatives have recently recognized the need to protect patients' access to telehealth services by voting to advance an additional two-year extension on a bipartisan, unanimous basis.

We ask you to prioritize provisions that remove geographic restrictions on telehealth services and permit the home and other clinically appropriate settings as originating sites. Congress should also expand the authority for practitioners eligible to furnish telehealth services. Rural and underserved communities rely on telehealth services, and Congress should recognize federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics as telehealth distant site providers. Additionally, Congress should allow the use of telehealth in the recertification of hospice care. Finally, telehealth has transformed mental and behavioral health care, now accounting for 40 percent of telehealth services provided under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. Therefore, Congress should permanently repeal the six-month in-person visit requirement for telemental health services. It should also reject similar policies that create barriers to care.

Telehealth provides essential access to care and improves outcomes, including reduced emergency department utilization and improved medication adherence. Medicare beneficiaries have come to rely on expanded access to telehealth services and are satisfied with the care they receive. While there is overwhelming support for Congress to enact permanent telehealth legislation, we must provide patients and clinicians with long-term certainty to support continued investment in technology and clinical models to meet the evolving health care needs of Medicare beneficiaries. We appreciate your collaboration and leadership on this issue and look forward to working with you to ensure access to telehealth services is retained by the end of 2024.

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