Government To Remove ACA Handcuff?
The Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act would allow employers to offer standalone telehealth service programs……………
Legislation Broadens Telehealth Benefits for Employees
MyHealthGuide Source: Mike Miliard, HealthcareITNews, 3/31/2022
The Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act would amend HIPAA and the Affordable Care Act to allow employers to offer standalone telehealth service programs – not unlike dental and vision plans – in addition to existing health insurance plans.
The House of Representatives has drafted a bill that would provide new virtual care options for American employees.
The proposed Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act would enable job creators to offer standalone telehealth service programs – not unlike dental and vision plans – in addition to existing health insurance plans.
The legislation was introduced by Reps. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., Jackie Walorski, R-Ind., Tim Walberg, R-Mich., and Angie Craig, D-Minn. It would expand access to employer-sponsored health benefits by classifying telehealth as an excepted benefit.
Specifically, the bill would amend HIPAA and the Affordable Care Act to allow employees to receive this benefit, maintaining that any standalone telehealth service would remain separate from traditional health plans, rather than as a replacement.
The full text of the act can be read here.
“COVID-19 put a new emphasis on telehealth and showed how impactful and convenient it can be for working families to get care similar to an in-office nurses station,” said DelBene in a statement. “Over the past two years, many employers have begun offering these telehealth services to their workforce.
“Even with many businesses returning to in-person work, we shouldn’t be turning our backs on the benefits of telehealth,” she added. “We’re introducing the Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act so workers can continue receiving this care from the comfort of their homes and on their own schedule.”
