Please support Telehealth.org’s ability to deliver helpful news, opinions, and analyses by turning off your ad blocker. If you are still scratching your head about where you can practice over state lines and how you’ll get paid, you may want to drop into the Center for Connected Health Policy (CHHP) website to see a regularly updated discussion. CHHP is an independent resource on national telehealth policies and state telehealth regulations.
Center for Connected Health Policy
The Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP), a project of the Public Health Institute, became the federally designated National Telehealth Policy Resource Center (NTRC-P) in 2012. It serves as an independent resource on telehealth policy issues. As stated on CCHP’s website, its mission is to: advance state and national telehealth policies that promote better systems of care, improve health outcomes, and provide greater health equity of access to quality affordable care and services. The National Telehealth Policy Resource Center is funded by a grant from the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth Resources and Services Administration in the Department of Health and Human Services. Originally established in 2008 by the California Healthcare Foundation, CCHP is dedicated to integrating telehealth virtual technologies into the healthcare system by promoting policy-based, objective research and informed practices. CCHP also offers technical assistance to anyone wanting to learn more about telehealth regulations nationally and telehealth laws by state.
State Telehealth Regulations
The Center for Connected Health Policy provides information about telehealth laws by state and related regulations, policies, and Medicaid programs. CCHP’s website allows one to select any state and identify the particular information they are looking for, such as current state laws and reimbursement policy. Search filters provided include Medicaid Telehealth Reimbursement, Private Payer Laws, or Professional Regulation / Health and Safety. Additionally, one can search for any topic desired.
A Search Example
If searching for information in the state of Ohio, one selects Ohio as the state and can click on the Private Payer Laws button. That yields a definition of telemedicine services and a description of service parity: a health benefit plan must provide coverage for telemedicine services on the same basis and to the same extent that the plan provides coverage for in-person healthcare services. Plans cannot exclude coverage for service solely because it is provided as a telemedicine service. CCHP also provides the citation from the Ohio Revised Code addressing the issue.
The Center for Connected Health Policy’s Other Resources
CCHP also has a comprehensive library of other resources. It includes Bill Analysis on pending bills, Fact Sheets on regulatory changes, key-research reports, and other policies that impact telehealth. It also contains Legislative and Regulatory Updates that are a summary of recent telehealth policy activity by region, Reports, Publications, and Policy Briefs that address pressing telehealth issues and research, Newsletters that focus on proposed legislation and policy changes, and a Video Library on telehealth policies, key research reports, and CCHP projects that impact telehealth.
COVID-19 Information Regarding Telehealth
Due to the Coronavirus global pandemic, The Center for Connected Health Policy has an invaluable wealth of information covering the ever-changing landscape of telehealth regulations and the provision of telehealth services.
Clinicians would be well served to visit the website frequently for the latest updates on existing regulations, as well as pending legislation regarding telehealth use, both now and post-pandemic.
Telehealth: How to Legally and Ethically Practice Over State Lines & International Borders
Practicing telehealth across state lines or international borders? Operate legally & ethically 100% of the time.
