Resources & Reports

On May 31, 2024, the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) which provided subsidies to households for broadband connectivity ended due to lack of additional funding.  Put into place as a replacement for the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, the ACP helped over 23 million households in the United States.  With the end of this program, continued access to the internet is questionable for these households.

CCHP’s June Newsletter is here! This month’s topics include – Senate Finance Committee Weighs Telehealth Solutions to Combat Fentanyl Crisis and Improve Behavioral Health Services; HHS and CMS Finalize Rule to Ensure Non-Discrimination in Telehealth Services; CMS Proposes TEAM Model to Enhance Care Coordination and Telehealth Access for Medicare Patients; Medicare SBIRT Services Includes Telehealth for Enhanced Accessibility Through Dec. 31, 2024; Evaluating Telemedicine Disparities for NHPI Medicaid Beneficiaries in Washington State; Latest Policy Developments in CCHP’s Telehealth Policy Finder and Policy Trends Map.

A recent Data & Society research report titled, “Doing the Work: The Future of Therapeutic Labor, Teletherapy, and the Platformization of Mental Health Care”, provides interesting insights from the provider perspective regarding direct-to-consumer (DTC) telehealth, or as referred to in the report, platform therapy. The author, Livia Garofalo, interviewed over 50 mental health professionals with teletherapy experience; some working solely with DTC platform companies, others in private practice, as well as providers working with community health agencies. Overall, the report examines the DTC platform work environment to showcase impacts and implications that are important to the overall telehealth landscape.

The surge in telehealth use over the course of the pandemic spurred a subsequent rise in digital health startups and telehealth offerings from various businesses. Now, post-pandemic, the industry side of telehealth is witnessing a different type of wave with several reports of companies ending short-lived telehealth services. Last month, UnitedHealth Group’s Optum confirmed the end of their virtual care business, originally launched in 2021, followed by an announcement from Walmart stating they would be closing Walmart Health Virtual Care, also launched in 2021.

In April 2024, the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) released the document, “Navigating the Responsible and Ethical Incorporation of Artificial Intelligence into Clinical Practice.”  Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been ramping up as a hot topic in policy the past few years as federal and state policymakers grapple with how best to address this area on a regulatory basis.  The recently released FSMB document is a result of a recommendation made by the task force FSMB convened which was intended to monitor AI developments.  As a result, FSMB adopted this document to provide physicians and state medical boards with guidance on how to navigate AI in practices in a “responsible and ethical incorporation” manner.