IB 

Union Calendar No. 785 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9457 

[Report No. 118–876, Part I] 

To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to prohibit 

increased payments under a group health plan or group health insurance 

coverage for telehealth services furnished by a provider located at a 

facility. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 6, 2024 

Mr. BEAN of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

DECEMBER 16, 2024 

Reported from the Committee on Education and the Workforce with an 

amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

DECEMBER 16, 2024 

Referral to the Committee on Energy and Commerce extended for a period 

ending not later than December 19, 2024 

DECEMBER 19, 2024 

Committee on Energy and Commerce discharged; committed to the Committee 

of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on September 6, 2024] 


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A BILL 

To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act 

of 1974 to prohibit increased payments under a group 

health plan or group health insurance coverage for telehealth services furnished by a provider located at a facility. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Transparent Telehealth 

5 Bills Act of 2024’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PROHIBITING INCREASED PAYMENTS UNDER A 

7 GROUP HEALTH PLAN OR GROUP HEALTH IN8 SURANCE COVERAGE FOR TELEHEALTH 

9 SERVICES FURNISHED BY A PROVIDER LO10 CATED AT A FACILITY. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart B of part 7 of subtitle B 

12 of title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act 

13 of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1185 et seq.) is amended by adding at 

14 the end the following new section: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 726. PROHIBITION ON INCREASED PAYMENTS FOR 

16 TELEHEALTH SERVICES FURNISHED BY A 

17 PROVIDER LOCATED AT A FACILITY. 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a telehealth service 

19 furnished to a participant or beneficiary of a group health 

20 plan or group health insurance coverage by a health care 

21 provider located at a health care facility, the total amount 

22 recognized by such plan or coverage as payment for such 

23 service (including any facility fee or other amount that may 

24 be billed separately by such facility in relation to such pro25 vider’s furnishing of such service) may not exceed the total 


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1 amount that would have been recognized by such plan or 

2 coverage as payment for such service had such provider not 

3 been located at such a facility. 

4 ‘‘(b) TELEHEALTH SERVICE DEFINED.—For purposes 

5 of this section, the term ‘telehealth service’ means a service 

6 furnished by a health care provider via a telecommuni7 cations system where such provider is not at the same loca8 tion as the individual receiving such service.’’. 

9 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents in 

10 section 1 of such Act is amended by inserting after the item 

11 relating to section 725 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 726. Prohibition on increased payments for telehealth services furnished by 

a provider located at a facility.’’. 

12 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the date 

13 of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the 

14 United States shall submit to Congress a report on what 

15 is known about the use of telehealth under group health 

16 plans and group or individual health insurance coverage 

17 (as such terms are defined in section 2791 of the Public 

18 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x)). Such report shall 

19 include the following: 

20 (1) Trends and statistics regarding the use of 

21 telehealth for specific types of care, including primary 

22 care, mental health care, and specialty care. 


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1 (2) Trends and statistics regarding the avail2 ability, access, and utilization of telehealth services by 

3 individuals residing in rural areas and urban areas. 

4 (3) Trends and statistics regarding the applica5 tion of hospital facility fees in the context of telehealth 

6 services. 

7 (4) Trends and statistics regarding how individ8 uals access telehealth services, including with respect 

9 to the devices used and tools offered by such plans and 

10 issuers of such coverage to facilitate access to such 

11 services and with respect to the utilization of audio12 only telehealth services. 

13 (5) Trends and statistics with respect to individ14 uals accessing telehealth services provided from physi15 cians or other medical professionals residing in a 

16 State other than the State that the individual is lo17 cated in while receiving such services and with respect 

18 to applicable State laws or State-to-State compacts 

19 that impact cross-State provision of telehealth serv20 ices. 

21 (6) Trends and statistics regarding payment and 

22 reimbursement for telehealth services. 

23 (7) Trends and statistics regarding premiums for 

24 such plans and coverage offering telehealth services. 


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1 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by sub2 section (a) shall apply to plan years beginning on or after 

3 January 1, 2026. 

4 SEC. 3. PROHIBITING HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS AND FA5 CILITIES FROM IMPOSING CERTAIN FACILITY 

6 FEES FOR TELEHEALTH. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle B of title I of the Employee 

8 Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1021 

9 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new 

10 part: 

11 ‘‘PART 9—BILLING REQUIREMENTS FOR HEALTH 

12 CARE FACILITIES AND PROVIDERS 

13 ‘‘SEC. 901. LIMITATION ON TELEHEALTH FACILITY FEES. 

14 ‘‘A health care facility may not bill a separate facility 

15 fee when a health care provider who provided telehealth 

16 services is authorized to bill independently for the profes17 sional services rendered.’’. 

18 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 502 of the Employee Re19 tirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1132) is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (a)(6), by striking ‘‘or (9)’’ and 

22 inserting ‘‘(9), or (13)’’; and 

23 (2) in subsection (c), by adding at the end the 

24 following new paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(13) If a health care provider or facility is 

2 found by the Secretary to be in violation of section 

3 901, the Secretary may assess a civil monetary pen4 alty against such provider or facility in an amount 

5 not to exceed $10,000 per violation.’’. 

6 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents of 

7 the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 

8 U.S.C. 1001 note) is amended by inserting after the item 

9 relating to section 804 the following new item: 

‘‘PART 9—BILLING REQUIREMENTS FOR HEALTH CARE FACILITIES AND

PROVIDERS

‘‘901. Limitation on telehealth facility fees.’’. 


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Union Calendar No. 785 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9457 

[Report No. 118–876, Part I] 

A BILL 

To amend the Employee Retirement Income Secua provider located at a facility. ance coverage for telehealth services furnished by under a group health plan or group health insur- rity Act of 1974 to prohibit increased payments 

DECEMBER 19, 2024 

Committee on Energy and Commerce discharged; comState of the Union and ordered to be printed mitted to the Committee of the Whole House on the 


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