Telemedicine trends Focuses on state legal and regulatory trends impacting health care providers, telehealth and digital health companies, pharmacists, and technology companies that deliver and facilitate virtual care.
Trends over the past week:
- reproductive health
- Telemedicine practice standards
- disciplinary guidelines
- behavioral health
- Regulatory license
Learn more
Enactment of final laws and regulations
- in California, the governor signed the Nursing Home Resident Informed Consent Protection Act of 2023. The new law amends the Bill of Rights for Skilled Nursing Facility Patients to provide that health care professionals must disclose and obtain from patients all important information regarding the administration of psychotherapeutic drugs. Patient informed consent. Under the law, health professionals can use remote technology, including telemedicine, to obtain consent. Willful or repeated violations of these provisions are punishable as misdemeanors. However, the state Department of Public Health, in consultation with stakeholders, will not impose penalties on facilities until Dec. 31, 2025, when the department plans to publish a standardized informed consent form.
Proposal-level legislation and rulemaking activities
highlight:
- in connecticut The Department of Consumer Protection has proposed rules that would expand pharmacists’ prescribing authority. The rule would authorize licensed pharmacists with the necessary training to prescribe emergency contraceptives and hormonal contraceptives to patients. The rule provides pharmacists with a department-published interactive guide that includes questions, age-appropriate medical examination information, and treatment algorithms to determine whether hormones or emergency contraceptives are clinically appropriate for a patient. It is required to assist the patient with a “screening document”. Hormones or emergency contraception. The screening document’s “treatment algorithm” is generated based on the medical history entered by the patient, showing the steps in the treatment pathway and outlining when a referral to a physician is recommended. A licensed pharmacy technician with the necessary training can assist with the screening process, but ultimately the prescribing pharmacist must decide whether to issue a prescription or refer to a practitioner.
- in pennsylvania, HB 1300 passed through the second chamber. If signed by the governor, the bill would allocate additional funding to the state’s Adult Mental and Behavioral Health Commission. It also increases access to behavioral health through telehealth services by providing funding to health care providers to purchase equipment such as computers, tablets, webcams, mobile devices, and telehealth carts and kiosks. You will. Secure funding to support training and technical assistance for telehealth services. Provides grants to primary care practitioners and organizations that utilize telemedicine to provide integrated behavioral health services. and to purchase or maintain Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)-compliant software, platforms, secure Wi-Fi hotspots, increased broadband speeds, and training beyond that provided by the Department of Human Services. Allocate additional funds to providers.
Why it’s important:
- Continued demand for mental health initiatives. Pennsylvania’s proposed regulations highlight the continued need for behavioral and mental health services. Increasing resources and funding for telehealth services will allow more patients to conveniently access behavioral health services.
- Strengthening patient rights and transparency. Recently enacted legislation in California strengthens patient rights within skilled nursing facilities. This law not only protects vulnerable individuals, but also emphasizes transparency in medical decisions.
- Innovation in formulation. The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection is pioneering a new approach to prescribing contraceptives. The proposed interactive screening document for prescribing pharmacists would streamline the prescribing process for emergency contraceptives and hormonal contraceptives. However, as with any algorithm, developers must ensure that treatment algorithms do not inadvertently disadvantage patients from certain backgrounds due to unconscious bias.
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