I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2903 

To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to expand access to telehealth 

services, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 28, 2021 

Mr. THOMPSON of California (for himself, Mr. SCHWEIKERT, Mr. JOHNSON

of Ohio, Ms. MATSUI, and Mr. WELCH) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in 

addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, 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 

A BILL 

To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to expand 

access to telehealth services, and for other purposes. 

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective 

6 Care Technologies (CONNECT) for Health Act of 2021’’ 

7 or the ‘‘CONNECT for Health Act of 2021’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings and sense of Congress. 

TITLE I—REMOVING BARRIERS TO TELEHEALTH COVERAGE 

Sec. 101. Expanding the use of telehealth through the waiver of requirements. 

Sec. 102. Removing geographic requirements for telehealth services. 

Sec. 103. Expanding originating sites. 

Sec. 104. Use of telehealth in emergency medical care. 

Sec. 105. Improvements to the process for adding telehealth services. 

Sec. 106. Federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics. 

Sec. 107. Native American health facilities. 

Sec. 108. Waiver of telehealth requirements during public health emergencies. 

Sec. 109. Use of telehealth in recertification for hospice care. 

TITLE II—PROGRAM INTEGRITY 

Sec. 201. Clarification for fraud and abuse laws regarding technologies provided to beneficiaries. 

Sec. 202. Additional resources for telehealth oversight. 

Sec. 203. Provider and beneficiary education on telehealth. 

TITLE III—DATA AND TESTING OF MODELS 

Sec. 301. Study on telehealth utilization during the COVID–19 pandemic. 

Sec. 302. Analysis of telehealth waivers in alternative payment models. 

Sec. 303. Model to allow additional health professionals to furnish telehealth 

services. 

Sec. 304. Testing of models to examine the use of telehealth under the Medicare program. 

3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

4 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) The use of technology in health care and 

6 coverage of telehealth services are rapidly evolving. 

7 (2) Research has found that telehealth services 

8 can expand access to care, improve the quality of 

9 care, and reduce spending, and that patients receiv10 ing telehealth services are satisfied with their experi11 ences. 


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1 (3) Health care workforce shortages are a sig2 nificant problem in many areas and for many types 

3 of health care clinicians. 

4 (4) Telehealth increases access to care in areas 

5 with workforce shortages and for individuals who 

6 live far away from health care facilities, have limited 

7 mobility or transportation, or have other barriers to 

8 accessing care. 

9 (5) The use of health technologies can strength10 en the expertise of the health care workforce, includ11 ing by connecting clinicians to specialty consulta12 tions. 

13 (6) Prior to the COVID–19 pandemic, the utili14 zation of telehealth services in the Medicare program 

15 under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 

16 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) was low, with only 0.25 percent 

17 of Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries utilizing tele18 health services in 2016. 

19 (7) The COVID–19 pandemic demonstrated ad20 ditional benefits of telehealth, including reducing in21 fection risk of patients and health care professionals 

22 and conserving space in health care facilities, and 

23 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rec24 ommended that telehealth services should be optiVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:42 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2903.IH H2903

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1 mized, when available and appropriate, during the 

2 pandemic. 

3 (8) Long-term certainty about coverage of tele4 health services under the Medicare program is nec5 essary to fully realize the benefits of telehealth. 

6 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con7 gress that— 

8 (1) health care providers can furnish safe, effec9 tive, and high-quality health care services through 

10 telehealth; 

11 (2) the Secretary of Health and Human Serv12 ices should promptly take all necessary measures to 

13 ensure that providers and beneficiaries can continue 

14 to furnish and utilize, respectively, telehealth serv15 ices in the Medicare program during and after the 

16 conclusion of the COVID–19 pandemic, including 

17 modifying, as appropriate, the definition of ‘‘inter18 active telecommunications system’’ in regulations 

19 and program instruction under the Medicare pro20 gram to ensure that providers can utilize all appro21 priate means and types of technology, including 

22 audio-visual, audio-only, and other types of tech23 nologies, to furnish telehealth services; and 

24 (3) barriers to the use of telehealth should be 

25 removed. 


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1 TITLE I—REMOVING BARRIERS 

2 TO TELEHEALTH COVERAGE 

3 SEC. 101. EXPANDING THE USE OF TELEHEALTH THROUGH 

4 THE WAIVER OF REQUIREMENTS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1834(m) of the Social Se6 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)) is amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (4)(C)(i), by striking ‘‘and 

8 (7)’’ and inserting ‘‘(7), and (9)’’; and 

9 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(9) AUTHORITY TO WAIVE REQUIREMENTS

11 AND LIMITATIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding the 

13 preceding provisions of this subsection, in the 

14 case of telehealth services furnished on or after 

15 January 1, 2022, the Secretary may waive any 

16 requirement described in subparagraph (B) that 

17 is applicable to payment for telehealth services 

18 under this subsection, but only if the Secretary 

19 determines that such waiver would not ad20 versely impact quality of care. 

21 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS DESCRIBED.—For 

22 purposes of this paragraph, requirements appli23 cable to payment for telehealth services under 

24 this subsection are— 


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1 ‘‘(i) requirements relating to qualifica2 tions for an originating site under para3 graph (4)(C)(ii); 

4 ‘‘(ii) any geographic requirement 

5 under paragraph (4)(C)(i) (other than ap6 plicable State law requirements, including 

7 State licensure requirements); 

8 ‘‘(iii) any limitation on the type of 

9 technology used to furnish telehealth serv10 ices; 

11 ‘‘(iv) any limitation on the types of 

12 practitioners who are eligible to furnish 

13 telehealth services (other than the require14 ment that the practitioner is enrolled 

15 under this title); 

16 ‘‘(v) any limitation on specific services 

17 designated as telehealth services pursuant 

18 to this subsection (provided the Secretary 

19 determines that such services are clinically 

20 appropriate to furnish remotely); or 

21 ‘‘(vi) any other limitation relating to 

22 the furnishing of telehealth services under 

23 this title identified by the Secretary. 

24 ‘‘(C) WAIVER IMPLEMENTATION.—In im25 plementing a waiver under this paragraph, the 


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1 Secretary may establish parameters, as appro2 priate, for telehealth services under such waiv3 er, including with respect to payment of a facil4 ity fee for originating sites and beneficiary and 

5 program integrity protections. 

6 ‘‘(D) PUBLIC COMMENT.—The Secretary 

7 shall establish a process by which stakeholders 

8 may (on at least an annual basis) provide public 

9 comment on waivers under this paragraph. 

10 ‘‘(E) PERIODIC REVIEW OF WAIVERS.— 

11 The Secretary shall periodically, but not more 

12 often than every 3 years, reassess each waiver 

13 under this paragraph to determine whether the 

14 waiver continues to meet the quality of care 

15 condition applicable under subparagraph (A). 

16 The Secretary shall terminate any waiver that 

17 does not continue to meet such condition.’’. 

18 (b) POSTING OF INFORMATION.—Not later than 2 

19 years after the date on which a waiver under section 

20 1834(m)(9) of the Social Security Act, as added by sub21 section (a), first becomes effective, and at least every 2 

22 years thereafter, the Secretary of Health and Human 

23 Services shall post on the internet website of the Centers 

24 for Medicare & Medicaid Services— 


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1 (1) the number of Medicare beneficiaries receiv2 ing telehealth services by reason of each waiver 

3 under such section; 

4 (2) the impact of such waivers on expenditures 

5 and utilization under title XVIII of the Social Secu6 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.); and 

7 (3) other outcomes, as determined appropriate 

8 by the Secretary. 

9 SEC. 102. REMOVING GEOGRAPHIC REQUIREMENTS FOR 

10 TELEHEALTH SERVICES. 

11 Section 1834(m)(4)(C) of the Social Security Act (42 

12 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(4)(C)), as amended by section 101, is 

13 amended— 

14 (1) in clause (i), in the matter preceding sub15 clause (I), by inserting ‘‘and clause (iii)’’ after ‘‘and 

16 (9)’’; and 

17 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

18 clause: 

19 ‘‘(iii) REMOVAL OF GEOGRAPHIC RE20 QUIREMENTS.—The geographic require21 ments described in clause (i) shall not 

22 apply with respect to telehealth services 

23 furnished on or after the date of the enact24 ment of this clause.’’. 


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1 SEC. 103. EXPANDING ORIGINATING SITES. 

2 (a) EXPANDING THE HOME AS AN ORIGINATING

3 SITE.—Section 1834(m)(4)(C)(ii)(X) of the Social Secu4 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(4)(C)(ii)(X)) is amended 

5 to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(X)(aa) Prior to the date of en7 actment of the CONNECT for Health 

8 Act of 2021, the home of an indi9 vidual but only for purposes of section 

10 1881(b)(3)(B) or telehealth services 

11 described in paragraph (7). 

12 ‘‘(bb) On or after such date of 

13 enactment, the home of an indi14 vidual.’’. 

15 (b) ALLOWING ADDITIONAL ORIGINATING SITES.— 

16 Section 1834(m)(4)(C)(ii) of the Social Security Act (42 

17 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(4)(C)(ii)) is amended by adding at the 

18 end the following new subclause: 

19 ‘‘(XII) Any other site determined 

20 appropriate by the Secretary at which 

21 an eligible telehealth individual is lo22 cated at the time a telehealth service 

23 is furnished via a telecommunications 

24 system.’’. 

25 (c) PARAMETERS FOR NEW ORIGINATING SITES.— 

26 Section 1834(m)(4)(C) of the Social Security Act (42 


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1 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(4)(C)), as amended by section 102, is 

2 amended by adding at the end the following new clause: 

3 ‘‘(iv) REQUIREMENTS FOR NEW

4 SITES.— 

5 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The Sec6 retary may establish requirements for 

7 the furnishing of telehealth services at 

8 sites described in clause (ii)(XII) to 

9 provide for beneficiary and program 

10 integrity protections. 

11 ‘‘(II) CLARIFICATION.—Nothing 

12 in this clause shall be construed to 

13 preclude the Secretary from estab14 lishing requirements for other origi15 nating sites described in clause (ii)’’. 

16 (d) NO ORIGINATING SITE FACILITY FEE FOR NEW

17 SITES.—Section 1834(m)(2)(B)(ii) of the Social Security 

18 Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(2)(B)(ii)) is amended— 

19 (1) in the heading, by striking ‘‘IF ORIGINATING

20 SITE IS THE HOME’’ and inserting ‘‘FOR CERTAIN

21 SITES’’; and 

22 (2) by striking ‘‘paragraph (4)(C)(ii)(X)’’ and 

23 inserting ‘‘subclause (X) or (XII) of paragraph 

24 (4)(C)’’. 


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1 SEC. 104. USE OF TELEHEALTH IN EMERGENCY MEDICAL 

2 CARE. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1834(m) of the Social Se4 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)), as amended by sections 

5 101 and 102, is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (4)(C)(i), by striking ‘‘and 

7 (9)’’ and inserting ‘‘(9), and (10)’’; and 

8 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(10) TREATMENT OF EMERGENCY MEDICAL

10 CARE FURNISHED THROUGH TELEHEALTH.—The 

11 geographic requirements described in paragraph 

12 (4)(C)(i) (other than applicable State law require13 ments, including State licensure requirements) shall 

14 not apply with respect to telehealth services that are 

15 services for emergency medical care (as determined 

16 by the Secretary) furnished on or after January 1, 

17 2022, to an eligible telehealth individual.’’. 

18 (b) ADDITIONAL SERVICES.—As part of the imple19 mentation of the amendments made by this section, the 

20 Secretary of Health and Human Services shall consider 

21 whether additional services should be added to the services 

22 specified in paragraph (4)(F)(i) of section 1834(m) of 

23 such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m)) for authorized payment 

24 under paragraph (1) of such section. 


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1 SEC. 105. IMPROVEMENTS TO THE PROCESS FOR ADDING 

2 TELEHEALTH SERVICES. 

3 (a) REVIEW.—The Secretary shall undertake a review 

4 of the process established pursuant to section 

5 1834(m)(4)(F)(ii) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

6 1395m(m)(4)(F)(ii)), and based on the results of such re7 view— 

8 (1) implement revisions to the process so that 

9 the criteria to add services prioritizes, as appro10 priate, improved access to care through clinically ap11 propriate telehealth services; and 

12 (2) provide clarification on what requests to 

13 add telehealth services under such process should in14 clude. 

15 (b) TEMPORARY COVERAGE OF CERTAIN TELE16 HEALTH SERVICES.—Section 1834(m)(4)(F) of the Social 

17 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(4)(F)) is amended by 

18 adding at the end the following new clause: 

19 ‘‘(iii) TEMPORARY COVERAGE OF CER20 TAIN TELEHEALTH SERVICES.—The Sec21 retary may add services with a reasonable 

22 potential likelihood of clinical benefit and 

23 improved access to care when furnished via 

24 a telecommunications system (as deter25 mined by the Secretary) on a temporary 


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1 basis to those specified in clause (i) for au2 thorized payment under paragraph (1).’’. 

3 SEC. 106. FEDERALLY QUALIFIED HEALTH CENTERS AND 

4 RURAL HEALTH CLINICS. 

5 Section 1834(m) of the Social Security Act (42 

6 U.S.C. 1395m(m)), as amended by sections 101, 102, and 

7 104, is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (4)(C)(i), in the matter pre9 ceding subclause (I), by inserting ‘‘, (8)’’ after 

10 ‘‘(7)’’; and 

11 (2) in paragraph (8)— 

12 (A) in the paragraph heading by inserting 

13 ‘‘AND AFTER’’ after ‘‘DURING ’’; 

14 (B) in subparagraph (A)— 

15 (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), 

16 by inserting ‘‘and after such emergency pe17 riod’’ after ‘‘1135(g)(1)(B)’’; 

18 (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

19 the end; 

20 (iii) by redesignating clause (iii) as 

21 clause (iv); and 

22 (iv) by inserting after clause (ii) the 

23 following new clause: 

24 ‘‘(iii) the geographic requirements de25 scribed in paragraph (4)(C)(i) shall not 


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1 apply with respect to such a telehealth 

2 service; and’’; 

3 (C) by striking subparagraph (B) and in4 serting the following: 

5 ‘‘(B) PAYMENT.— 

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A telehealth serv7 ice furnished by a Federally qualified 

8 health center or a rural health clinic to an 

9 individual pursuant to this paragraph on 

10 or after the date of the enactment of this 

11 subparagraph shall be deemed to be so fur12 nished to such individual as an outpatient 

13 of such clinic or facility (as applicable) for 

14 purposes of paragraph (1) or (3), respec15 tively, of section 1861(aa) and payable as 

16 a Federally qualified health center service 

17 or rural health clinic service (as applicable) 

18 under the prospective payment system es19 tablished under section 1834(o) or under 

20 section 1833(a)(3), respectively. 

21 ‘‘(ii) TREATMENT OF COSTS FOR

22 FQHC PPS CALCULATIONS AND RHC AIR

23 CALCULATIONS.—Costs associated with the 

24 delivery of telehealth services by a Feder25 ally qualified health center or rural health 


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1 clinic serving as a distant site pursuant to 

2 this paragraph shall be considered allow3 able costs for purposes of the prospective 

4 payment system established under section 

5 1834(o) and any payment methodologies 

6 developed under section 1833(a)(3), as ap7 plicable.’’. 

8 SEC. 107. NATIVE AMERICAN HEALTH FACILITIES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1834(m)(4)(C) of the So10 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(4)(C)), as amend11 ed by sections 101, 102, and 103, is amended— 

12 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘clause (iii)’’ and 

13 inserting ‘‘clauses (iii) and (v)’’; and 

14 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

15 clause: 

16 ‘‘(v) NATIVE AMERICAN HEALTH FA17 CILITIES.—With respect to telehealth serv18 ices furnished on or after January 1, 2022, 

19 the originating site requirements described 

20 in clauses (i) and (ii) shall not apply with 

21 respect to a facility of the Indian Health 

22 Service, whether operated by such Service, 

23 or by an Indian tribe (as that term is de24 fined in section 4 of the Indian Health 

25 Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1603)) 


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1 or a tribal organization (as that term is 

2 defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-De3 termination and Education Assistance Act 

4 (25 U.S.C. 5304)), or a facility of the Na5 tive Hawaiian health care systems author6 ized under the Native Hawaiian Health 

7 Care Improvement Act (42 U.S.C. 11701 

8 et seq.).’’. 

9 (b) NO ORIGINATING SITE FACILITY FEE FOR CER10 TAIN NATIVE AMERICAN FACILITIES.—Section 

11 1834(m)(2)(B)(i) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

12 1395m(m)(2)(B)(i)) is amended, in the matter preceding 

13 subclause (I), by inserting ‘‘(other than an originating site 

14 that is only described in clause (v) of paragraph (4)(C), 

15 and does not meet the requirement for an originating site 

16 under clauses (i) and (ii) of such paragraph)’’ after ‘‘the 

17 originating site’’. 

18 SEC. 108. WAIVER OF TELEHEALTH REQUIREMENTS DUR19 ING PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCIES. 

20 Section 1135(g)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 

21 U.S.C. 1320b–5(g)(1)) is amended— 

22 (1) in subparagraph (A), in the matter pre23 ceding clause (i), by striking ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘subparagraphs (B) and (C)’’; and 


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1 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub2 paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTION FOR WAIVER OF TELE4 HEALTH REQUIREMENTS DURING PUBLIC

5 HEALTH EMERGENCIES.—For purposes of sub6 section (b)(8), in addition to the emergency pe7 riod described in subparagraph (B), an ‘emer8 gency area’ is a geographical area in which, and 

9 an ‘emergency period’ is the period during 

10 which, there exists a public health emergency 

11 declared by the Secretary pursuant to section 

12 319 of the Public Health Service Act.’’. 

13 SEC. 109. USE OF TELEHEALTH IN RECERTIFICATION FOR 

14 HOSPICE CARE. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1814(a)(7)(D)(i)(II) of 

16 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395f(a)(7)(D)(i)(II)) 

17 is amended by inserting ‘‘and after such emergency pe18 riod’’ after ‘‘1135(g)(1)(B)’’. 

19 (b) GAO REPORT.—Not later than 3 years after the 

20 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

21 of the United States shall submit a report to Congress 

22 evaluating the impact of the amendment made by sub23 section (a) on— 


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1 (1) the number and percentage of beneficiaries 

2 recertified for the Medicare hospice benefit at 180 

3 days and for subsequent benefit periods; 

4 (2) the appropriateness for hospice care of the 

5 patients recertified through the use of telehealth; 

6 and 

7 (3) any other factors determined appropriate by 

8 the Comptroller General. 

9 TITLE II—PROGRAM INTEGRITY 

10 SEC. 201. CLARIFICATION FOR FRAUD AND ABUSE LAWS 

11 REGARDING TECHNOLOGIES PROVIDED TO 

12 BENEFICIARIES. 

13 Section 1128A(i)(6) of the Social Security Act (42 

14 U.S.C. 1320a–7a(i)(6)) is amended— 

15 (1) in subparagraph (I), by striking ‘‘; or’’ and 

16 inserting a semicolon; 

17 (2) in subparagraph (J), by striking the period 

18 at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub20 paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(K) the provision of technologies (as de22 fined by the Secretary) on or after the date of 

23 the enactment of this subparagraph, by a pro24 vider of services or supplier (as such terms are 

25 defined for purposes of title XVIII) directly to 


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1 an individual who is entitled to benefits under 

2 part A of title XVIII, enrolled under part B of 

3 such title, or both, for the purpose of furnishing 

4 telehealth services, remote patient monitoring 

5 services, or other services furnished through the 

6 use of technology (as defined by the Secretary), 

7 if— 

8 ‘‘(i) the technologies are not offered 

9 as part of any advertisement or solicita10 tion; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) the provision of the technologies 

12 meets any other requirements set forth in 

13 regulations promulgated by the Sec14 retary.’’. 

15 SEC. 202. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR TELEHEALTH 

16 OVERSIGHT. 

17 In addition to amounts otherwise available, there are 

18 authorized to be appropriated to the Inspector General of 

19 the Department of Health and Human Services for each 

20 of fiscal years 2022 through 2026, out of any money in 

21 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, $3,000,000, to 

22 remain available until expended, for purposes of con23 ducting audits, investigations, and other oversight and en24 forcement activities with respect to telehealth services, re25 mote patient monitoring services, or other services furVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:42 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2903.IH H2903

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1 nished through the use of technology (as defined by the 

2 Secretary). 

3 SEC. 203. PROVIDER AND BENEFICIARY EDUCATION ON 

4 TELEHEALTH. 

5 (a) EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES AND TRAINING SES6 SIONS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months 

8 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec9 retary of Health and Human Services shall develop 

10 and make available to beneficiaries and health care 

11 professionals educational resources and training ses12 sions on requirements relating to the furnishing of 

13 telehealth services under section 1834(m) of the So14 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)) and topics 

15 including— 

16 (A) requirements for payment for tele17 health services; 

18 (B) telehealth-specific health care privacy 

19 and security training; 

20 (C) utilizing telehealth services to engage 

21 and support underserved, high-risk, and vulner22 able patient populations; and 

23 (D) other topics as determined appropriate 

24 by the Secretary. 


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1 (2) ACCOUNTING FOR AGE AND OTHER DIF2 FERENCES.—Such resources and training sessions 

3 must account for age and sociodemographic, geo4 graphic, cultural, cognitive, and linguistic differences 

5 in how individuals interact with technology. 

6 (b) QUALITY IMPROVEMENT ORGANIZATIONS.—The 

7 Secretary shall consider including technical assistance, 

8 education, and training on telehealth services as a re9 quired activity of the quality improvement organizations 

10 described in section 1862(g) of the Social Security Act. 

11 (c) FUNDING.—There are authorized to be appro12 priated such sums as necessary to carry out the activities 

13 described in sections (a) and (b). 

14 TITLE III—DATA AND TESTING 

15 OF MODELS 

16 SEC. 301. STUDY ON TELEHEALTH UTILIZATION DURING 

17 THE COVID–19 PANDEMIC. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall collect and 

19 analyze qualitative and quantitative data on the impact 

20 of telehealth services, virtual check-ins, remote patient 

21 monitoring services, and other services furnished through 

22 the use of technology permitted by the waiver or modifica23 tion of certain requirements under title XVIII of the So24 cial Security Act (42 15 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) and, as fea25 sible, under title XIX of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et 


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1 seq.), and any regulations thereunder during the COVID– 

2 19 public health emergency, which may include the collec3 tion of data regarding— 

4 (1) health care utilization rates under such title 

5 XVIII and, as feasible, under such title XIX, includ6 ing utilization— 

7 (A) in different types of areas; 

8 (B) by race, ethnicity, or income levels; 

9 and 

10 (C) of telehealth services furnished by dif11 ferent types of health care professionals; 

12 (2) health care quality, such as measured by 

13 hospital readmission rates, missed appointment 

14 rates, patient and provider satisfaction, or other ap15 propriate measures; 

16 (3) health outcomes of individuals utilizing tele17 health services; 

18 (4) audio-only telehealth utilization rates when 

19 video-based telehealth was not an option, including 

20 the types of services and the types of providers 

21 treating individuals using audio-only telehealth; 

22 (5) waivers of State licensure requirements; 

23 (6) the types of technologies utilized to deliver 

24 or receive telehealth care and utilization rates, 

25 disaggregated by type of technology (as applicable); 


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1 (7) challenges for providers in furnishing tele2 health services; 

3 (8) the investments necessary for providers to 

4 effectively provide telehealth services to their pa5 tients, including the costs of necessary technology 

6 and of training staff; and 

7 (9) any additional information determined ap8 propriate by the Secretary. 

9 (b) INTERIM REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

10 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec11 retary shall submit to the Committee on Finance and the 

12 Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 

13 the Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means and 

14 the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 

15 of Representatives an interim report on the impact of tele16 health based on the data collected and analyzed under sub17 section (a). For the purposes of the interim report, the 

18 Secretary may determine which data collected and ana19 lyzed under such subsection is most appropriate to com20 plete such report. 

21 (c) FINAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

22 one year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec23 retary shall submit to the Committee on Finance and the 

24 Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 

25 the Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means and 


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•HR 2903 IH

1 the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 

2 of Representatives a final report on the impact of tele3 health based on the data collected and analyzed under sub4 section (a) that includes— 

5 (1) conclusions regarding the impact of tele6 health services on health care delivery during the 

7 COVID–19 public health emergency; and 

8 (2) an estimation of total spending on tele9 health services under title XVIII of the Social Secu10 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) and, as feasible, 

11 under title XIX of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et 

12 seq.). 

13 (d) STAKEHOLDER INPUT.—For purposes of sub14 sections (a), (b), and (c), the Secretary shall seek input 

15 from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, the 

16 Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, 

17 and nongovernmental stakeholders, including patient or18 ganizations, providers, and experts in telehealth. 

19 (e) FUNDING.—There are authorized to be appro20 priated such sums as necessary to carry out this section. 

21 SEC. 302. ANALYSIS OF TELEHEALTH WAIVERS IN ALTER22 NATIVE PAYMENT MODELS. 

23 The second sentence of section 1115A(g) of the So24 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1315a(g)) is amended by in25 serting ‘‘an analysis of waivers (if applicable) under subVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:42 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2903.IH H2903

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•HR 2903 IH

1 section (d)(1) related to telehealth and the impact on qual2 ity and spending under the applicable titles of such waiv3 ers,’’ after ‘‘subsection (c),’’. 

4 SEC. 303. MODEL TO ALLOW ADDITIONAL HEALTH PROFES5 SIONALS TO FURNISH TELEHEALTH SERV6 ICES. 

7 Section 1115A(b)(2)(B) of the Social Security Act 

8 (42 U.S.C. 1315a(b)(2)(B)) is amended by adding at the 

9 end the following new clause: 

10 ‘‘(xxviii) Allowing health professionals, 

11 such as those described in section 

12 1819(b)(5)(G) or section 1861(ll)(4)(B), 

13 who are enrolled under section 1866(j) and 

14 not otherwise eligible under section 

15 1834(m) to furnish telehealth services to 

16 furnish such services.’’. 

17 SEC. 304. TESTING OF MODELS TO EXAMINE THE USE OF 

18 TELEHEALTH UNDER THE MEDICARE PRO19 GRAM. 

20 Section 1115A(b)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 

21 U.S.C. 1315a(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the 

22 following new subparagraph: 

23 ‘‘(D) TESTING MODELS TO EXAMINE USE

24 OF TELEHEALTH UNDER MEDICARE.—The Sec25 retary shall consider testing under this subVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:42 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2903.IH H2903

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•HR 2903 IH

1 section models to examine the use of telehealth 

2 under title XVIII.’’. 

Æ 


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