The Idaho legislature passed several bills impacting Idaho physicians. For a complete list of new healthcare laws, please see the Idaho Medical Association advocacy page. All laws are effective July 1, 2023 unless otherwise noted. Telehealth/Virtual Care Virtual Care Access Act (H 162): This Act clarifies virtual care practice requirements and addresses requirements for out-of-state providers treating patients via virtual care while the patient is located in Idaho. Mental, behavioral telehealth (H 61): House Bill 61 provides that a licensed mental or behavioral health provider who is not licensed in Idaho may provide telehealth services to an Idaho resident or...
DEA Extends COVID Telemedicine Prescribing Rules for Controlled Substances
UPDATE: DEA and HHS Extend Telemedicine Flexibilities through 2024 October 9, 2023 Statement from the DEA on Telemedicine Flexibilities deadline: "We continue to carefully consider the input received and are working to promulgate a final set of telemedicine regulations by the fall of 2024, giving patients and medical practitioners time to plan for, and adapt to, the new rules once issued. Accordingly, DEA, jointly with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has extended current telemedicine flexibilities through December 31, 2024. The full text of the extension, entitled “Second Temporary Extension of COVID-19 Telemedicine Flexibilities for Prescription of Controlled...
On 1/30/23 the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced that the federal COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, which was first issued in 2020 and extended for another 90 days on January 11th, will not be extended further. Thus, the public health emergency will expire on May 11, 2023. The HHS recently posted a Transition Roadmap Fact Sheet that discusses what will and will not be affected by the expiration of the public health emergency. One of the several affected regulations relates to the prescription of controlled substances: “The ability of health care providers to safely dispense controlled substances via...
A variety of subjects impacting physicians were signed into law by Governor Newsom in 2021. Following is a sampling of new laws you should be aware of; all are effective January 1, 2022 unless otherwise noted. A comprehensive report on new healthcare laws is available from the California Medical Association. Electronic Prescribing Mandate This law (passed by the California Legislature in 2018) requires that almost all prescriptions written in California be transmitted electronically. The California Medical Association has published a description of the law, including the types of prescriptions that are exempt from the mandate. Does electronic prescribing trigger HIPAA...
Review of Bohn v. Providence Health Services Lawsuit
The Alaska Supreme Court recently interpreted a portion of the Alaska Healthcare Decision Act under Bohn v. Providence Health Services – Washington. While this is the first time the Court has interpreted the HCDA, its decision focused on a single provision of the statute, AS 13.52.080(a)(3). This provision grants immunity to health care providers declining to comply with a person’s health care decision so long as the provider “acts in good faith and in accordance with generally accepted health care standards” and so long as the refusal to comply is “based on a good faith belief that the person then...