Senators Call for Permanent Access to Telehealth for Medicare Beneficiaries

U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), co-chair of the Senate Telehealth Working Group and author of the Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies (CONNECT) for Health Act, led a group of bipartisan lawmakers to urge the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to work with Congress to ensure Medicare beneficiaries maintain access to telehealth. 

In a letter to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra, the lawmakers underscored the urgent need to act on making pandemic-era telehealth flexibilities permanent. As part of these pandemic era flexibilities, HHS allowed a limited number of audiology services to be provided via telehealth. 

Without action, those COVID-19 flexibilities that allowed more Medicare beneficiaries to access these audiology services via telehealth will expire at the end of 2024.

For more information: Schatz Leads Group Of Bipartisan Lawmakers Calling For Permanent Access To Telehealth For Medicare Beneficiaries | U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (senate.gov)