telemedicine Archives - EMPLOYEE BENEFITS BLOG

Vermont Enacts New Telehealth Legislation Impacting Health Insurers

by Amanda Enyeart and Alan LeBlang | Jun 18, 2025 | Digital Health, Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

Vermont’s governor recently signed S 30 into law. The legislation, which goes into effect on September 1, 2025, requires that health insurance plans provide coverage for healthcare and dental services delivered through telemedicine to the same extent as if the services were provided through in-person consultations. Health insurance plans must also provide the same reimbursement rate for services billed using equivalent procedure codes and modifiers, subject to the terms of the health insurance plan and provider contract, regardless of whether the service was provided in person or through telemedicine.

For more updates on state legislative and regulatory developments related to telehealth, check out the latest Trending in Telehealth published by the Health & Life Sciences Group.

Election 2024: Reproductive Rights in the US

by Sarah Raaii | Oct 31, 2024 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

With the US election less than one week away, what are the legal implications of a Harris-Walz administration versus a Trump-Vance administration on reproductive rights? In this Q&A, Sarah Raaii explores how the election’s outcome could impact how plan sponsors and employers address reproductive care, including fertility treatments like in vitro fertilization.

Read the Q&A here.

Election 2024: Gender-Affirming Care in the US

by Gregory Fosheim, Sarah Raaii and Alden Bianchi | Oct 29, 2024 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act

With the US election one week away, what are the legal implications of a Harris-Walz administration versus a Trump-Vance administration regarding gender-affirming care? In this Q&A, Greg Fosheim, Sarah Raaii, and Alden Bianchi discuss how the election’s outcome could affect clients in the employee benefits and healthcare spaces.

Read the Q&A here.

DEA Further Extends Flexibilities for Controlled-Substance Prescribing via Telemedicine

by Amanda Enyeart, Marshall E. Jackson, Jr., Lisa Schmitz Mazur, Dale C. Van Demark, Patrick Zanayed, Purnima Boominathan, Grayson I. Dimick, Jayda Greco and Rachel Stauffer | Oct 25, 2023 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

The US Drug Enforcement Administration and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration have further extended flexibilities that allow providers to prescribe controlled substances via telemedicine without first performing an in-person visit. The flexibilities were initially provided during the COVID-19 public health emergency. The extension runs through December 31, 2024.

Teleprescribing of Controlled Substances Temporarily Extended Beyond PHE

by Lisa Schmitz Mazur, Rachel Stauffer, Amanda Enyeart, Jayda Greco, Marika Miller, Grayson I. Dimick, Moyosore Koya, Marshall E. Jackson, Jr., Dale C. Van Demark and Patrick Zanayed | Jun 23, 2023 | Digital Health, Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

The US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) are extending telehealth flexibilities that allow providers to prescribe controlled substances. While the extension is in place, the DEA indicated that it will be further evaluating its recently proposed rules for post-COVID-19 public health emergency telemedicine prescription of controlled substances.

Healthcare Enforcement in the Post-Pandemic Era

by Laura McLane, Tony Maida and Dana McSherry | Jun 28, 2022 | Digital Health, Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

As the world emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare fraud enforcement remains a top priority for the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and other government agencies with enforcement authority. In this Westlaw Today article, McDermott Partners Laura McLane, Tony Maida and Dana M. McSherry describe some of the areas that have assumed particularly high enforcement priority, including private equity, telehealth and pandemic relief funds.

Access the article.

50-State Survey | Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships

by Amanda Enyeart, Dale C. Van Demark, Lisa Schmitz Mazur, Marshall E. Jackson, Jr. and Stacey Callaghan | Sep 29, 2021 | Digital Health, Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

Telehealth’s state-by-state regulatory patchwork means that healthcare providers must navigate a variety of regulations that govern which types of care can be provided by virtual means, and even what modalities can be used in different care settings. McDermott’s recent 50-state survey explores the standard and requirements that physicians and nurse practitioners must follow when prescribing non-controlled substances or ordering tests via a telemedicine encounter. Key issues addressed in the survey include:

In what states are asynchronous solutions permitted?
What are state rules governing prescriptions when a physician-patient relationship does not exist prior to the telehealth encounter?
What are state rules on prescribing via audio-visual encounters or audio-only encounters?
Under what state regulations can a questionnaire be sufficient to create a physician-patient or advance practice registered nurse-patient relationship?

Access the survey.

Protecting the Telehealth Consumer: FTC and State-Based Considerations

by Jiayan Chen | Sep 21, 2021 | Digital Health, Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Privacy and Data Security

Telemedicine in the United States is facing an important crossroads. While telehealth services have demonstrated their value as an integral part of care delivery, federal and state waivers instituted during the COVID-19 pandemic are likely to expire soon. As lawmakers and agency officials consider updated or expanded digital health rules, regulators are expected to intensify their scrutiny of providers.

In this webinar, McDermott partners Jiayan Chen and Brian J. Boyle explore consumer protections for telehealth consumers, including the following:

Privacy considerations beyond the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, including Federal Trade Commission requirements;
How to prepare for the Health Breach Notification Rule;
The ins and outs of advertising telehealth, including claims, endorsements and social media;
Strategies for engaging with users in the digital environment; and
Increased fraud enforcement.

Access the webinar.

Virus Stokes Telemedicine, Mental Health Benefits’ Popularity

by Jacob Mattinson | Jan 19, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

The COVID-19 pandemic that ravaged 2020 spurred workers to take advantage of telemedicine and mental health benefits more frequently, and demand for those services isn’t expected to wane in the near future, experts say.

A recent article in Law360 examined three ways the pandemic had an impact on employee benefits over the past year, with McDermott partner Jacob Mattinson weighing in.

Access the article.

CARES Act Impacts All Benefit Plans

by Andrew Liazos, Erin Steele, Evan A. Belosa, Jacob Mattinson, Lindsay Ditlow, Lisa Loesel, Ralph E. DeJong, Samuel Everett Dewey and Sarah L. Engle | Mar 31, 2020 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Executive Compensation, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

In the ongoing effort to help individuals impacted by COVID-19, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Securities Act (CARES Act) on March 27, 2020. The President signed the CARES Act into law the same day. The historic stimulus package provides wide-ranging relief for both employers and employees. This includes rules that impact health and welfare, retirement and executive compensation plans and programs.

For more information about the impact of the CARES Act on employer-provided benefits, access our On the Subject articles on the:

In addition, for information about the frequently asked questions regarding health and welfare, retirement and executive compensation issues in the COVID-19 era, access our FAQs.

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