A Telehealth Model Statue and Other Policy Recommendations

• Full Report: Advancing CA’s Leadership in Telehealth Policy
• Summary: Advancing CA’s Leadership in Telehealth Policy
• FAQ: Telehealth Model Statue
• Report: Reimbursement Under the TDA of 1996

In 2009 with a grant from The California Endowment, CCHP launched a year-long research project to identify where California telehealth policy may have become outdated and obstructive for technology-enabled health care delivery. This project convened a work group of 25 nationally prominent health experts to examine and discuss current California policies, state and national research, and key informant interviews with the goal of developing practical policy recommendations for California.

MODEL STATUTE REPORT

The final report, “Advancing California’s Leadership in Telehealth Policy,” identified policies to promote greater, more beneficial use of telehealth across California. CCHP developed the report with policy makers in mind, providing a platform to update California’s existing Telemedicine Development Act of 1996 (TDA) and create an ideal policy environment for telehealth in California.

The model statute report offered policy recommendations that included:

• Redefine “telemedicine” as “telehealth,” to reflect changes in technologies, settings and applications;
• Incorporate mechanisms into loan repayment programs that assure telehealth technologies are being used to expand access to health care for the underserved;
• Require coverage of encounters irrespective of the setting;
• Remove the 2013 sunset on Medi-Cal reimbursement for store and forward teledermatology and teleophthalmology.

TELEHEALTH ADVANCEMENT ACT OF 2011

Before the Model Statute report, the foundation of California’s telehealth law was the Telemedicine Development Act of 1996 (TDA). Though groundbreaking at the time, the law became outdated as years passed, and eventually hindered telehealth from benefitting the health care system.

Recommendations from the Model Statute Report, which sought to update the TDA, became the basis for Assemblyman Dan Logue (R-Chico)’s AB 415, the Telehealth Advancement Act of 2011. AB 415 passed with unanimous bipartisan support, and became law in 2012. Some of the key advancements in the law include:

• A broadly defined “telehealth” now replaces “telemedicine,” and is recognized as  a mode of delivering services rather than a distinct service;
• All licensed health professionals can use telehealth to deliver services;
• Telehealth can take place in many more locations than before.

CALIFORNIA AFTER AB 415

Since passage of AB 415, telehealth policy in California continues to evolve with many of the changes based upon the work done in this project.  In 2019, Medi-Cal updated their telehealth policies including many of the suggested changes CCHP has made over the years such as allowing the provider to decide when it would be appropriate to use telehealth (in Medi-Cal’s policy either live video or store-and-forward).  Additionally, legislation continues to be passed refining state laws impacting commercial payers such as 2019’s AB 744 which requires health plans to ensure telehealth services receive both service coverage and payment parity starting in 2021.

The impact of the Model Statute work continues a decade later.

Support for the project came from The California Endowment.