Title: Ensuring Telehealth Expansion Act of 2020
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Ensuring Telehealth Expansion Act of 2020
This bill extends through December 31, 2025, several telehealth flexibilities that were initially authorized during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019), such as expanded Medicare coverage of such services.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8528 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8528

 To extend certain provisions relating to telehealth services, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 2, 2020

 Mr. Williams introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Ways and Means, 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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To extend certain provisions relating to telehealth services, and for 
                            other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Ensuring Telehealth Expansion Act of 
2020''.

SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS RELATING TO TELEHEALTH 
              SERVICES.

    (a) Exemption for Telehealth Services.--
            (1) In general.--Subparagraph (E) of section 223(c)(2) of 
        the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking 
        ``December 31, 2021'' and inserting ``December 31, 2025''.
            (2) Certain coverage disregarded.--Clause (ii) of section 
        223(c)(1)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 
        striking ``December 31, 2021'' and inserting ``December 31, 
        2025''.
            (3) Effective date.--The amendments made by this subsection 
        shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Increasing Medicare Telehealth Flexibilities During Limited 
Period.--Section 1135(b)(8) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1320b-5(b)(8)) is amended by striking ``during any portion of any 
emergency period'' and inserting ``during any portion of the period 
beginning on the first day of the emergency period described in 
subsection (g)(1)(B) and ending on December 31, 2025''.
    (c) Enhancing Medicare Telehealth Services for Federally Qualified 
Health Centers and Rural Health Clinics During Limited Period; 
Eliminating Special Payment Rule for Such Services.--
            (1) In general.--Paragraph (8) of section 1834(m) of the 
        Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)) is amended to read as 
        follows:
            ``(8) Enhancing telehealth services for federally qualified 
        health centers and rural health clinics during limited 
        period.--During the period beginning on the first day of the 
        emergency period described in section 1135(g)(1)(B) and ending 
        on December 31, 2025--
                    ``(A) the Secretary shall pay for telehealth 
                services that are furnished via a telecommunications 
                system by a Federally qualified health center or a 
                rural health clinic to an eligible telehealth 
                individual enrolled under this part notwithstanding 
                that the Federally qualified health center or rural 
                clinic providing the telehealth service is not at the 
                same location as the beneficiary; and
                    ``(B) for purposes of this subsection--
                            ``(i) the term `distant site' includes a 
                        Federally qualified health center or rural 
                        health clinic that furnishes a telehealth 
                        service to an eligible telehealth individual; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) the term `telehealth services' 
                        includes a rural health clinic service or 
                        Federally qualified health center service that 
                        is furnished using telehealth to the extent 
                        that payment codes corresponding to services 
                        identified by the Secretary under clause (i) or 
                        (ii) of paragraph (4)(F) are listed on the 
                        corresponding claim for such rural health 
                        clinic service or Federally qualified health 
                        center service.''.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 1834(m)(2)(A) of the 
        Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(2)(A)) is amended by 
        striking ``Subject to paragraph (8), the'' and inserting 
        ``The''.
            (3) Effective date.--The amendments made by this subsection 
        shall take effect as if included in the enactment of the CARES 
        Act (Public Law 116-136).
    (d) Temporary Waiver of Requirements for Face-to-Face Visits 
Between Home Dialysis Patients and Physicians.--Section 
1881(b)(3)(B)(iii) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1395rr(b)(3)(B)(iii)) is amended by striking ``during the emergency 
period described in section 1135(g)(1)(B)'' and inserting ``during the 
period beginning on the first day of the emergency period described in 
section 1135(g)(1)(B) and ending on December 31, 2025''.
    (e) Use of Telehealth To Conduct Face-to-Face Encounter Prior to 
Recertification of Eligibility for Hospice Care During Limited 
Period.--Section 1814(a)(7)(D)(i)(II) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395f(a)(7(D)(i)(II)) is amended by striking ``during the 
emergency period described in section 1135(g)(1)(B)'' and inserting 
``during the period beginning on the first day of the emergency period 
described in section 1135(g)(1)(B) and ending on December 31, 2025''.
    (f) Encouraging Use of Telecommunications Systems for Home Health 
Services Furnished During Limited Period.--Section 3707 of the CARES 
Act (Public Law 116-136) is amended by striking ``during the emergency 
period described in section 1135(g)(1)(B) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1320b-
5(g)(1)(B))'' and inserting ``during the period beginning on the first 
day of the emergency period described in section 1135(g)(1)(B) of such 
Act (42 U.S.C. 1320b-5(g)(1)(B)) and ending on December 31, 2025''.

SEC. 3. TEMPORARY NONAPPLICATION OF ORIGINATING SITE REQUIREMENTS WITH 
              RESPECT TO TELEHEALTH SERVICES UNDER MEDICARE PROGRAM.

    Section 1834(m)(4)(C) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1395m(m)(4)(C)) is amended--
            (1) in clause (i), by inserting before ``paragraphs (5), 
        (6), and (7)'' the following: ``clause (iii) and''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new clause:
                            ``(iii) Temporary nonapplication of 
                        originating site requirements.--For the period 
                        beginning on the first day of the emergency 
                        period described in section 1135(g)(1)(B) and 
                        ending on December 31, 2025, the term 
                        `originating site' means any site at which the 
                        eligible telehealth individual is located at 
                        the time the service is furnished via a 
                        telecommunications system.''.

SEC. 4. REPORT BY COMPTROLLER GENERAL.

    The Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 
Congress--
            (1) not later than December 31, 2023, a report on the 
        success and limitations of implementing the statutory 
        provisions amended by sections 2 and 3, including--
                    (A) details of any savings or costs to the Federal 
                Government that are attributable to the implementation 
                of such provisions; and
                    (B) an analysis of how the implementation of such 
                provisions have impacted rural hospitals; and
            (2) not later than December 31, 2025, updates regarding the 
        report described in paragraph (1).
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