Posted: | December 6, 2018 11:20 AM |
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From: | Representative Gary Day |
To: | All House members |
Subject: | Legislation Establishing a Telemedicine Law for Pennsylvania |
In the near future, I will be introducing legislation to define what telemedicine is, offer guidelines outlining who can provide telemedicine services, professional liability coverage, requirements for evaluation and treatment, and medical record standards. Additionally, the bill will provide clarity that these services will be reimbursed by insurance. Telemedicine can benefit many of those with unmet clinical needs in urban and rural areas. This includes patients, physicians, hospitals, nursing homes, schools, employer clinics, behavioral health organizations, and prisons. Telemedicine allows for two-way real time interactive communication between patient and the physician or practitioner at the distant site. Telemedicine is a significant and rapidly growing component of health care. Through the use of telemedicine, specialists and other health care providers are able to expand their reach, helping patients stay in their communities and avoid traveling long distances for specialized care. This is a new technology enabled service for many of our citizens that are in a rural or medically underserved areas who may not have access to the specialist needed to monitor and treat their health concerns. Savings realized from this should be enjoyed by both providers and payers. I hope you will join me in cosponsoring this important piece of legislation. |
Introduced as HB872