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Please find below the latest developments in federal and state virtual care policy as well as research, data, and polling on virtual care.
This is the public update of the Alliance, issued quarterly. The biweekly Alliance newsletter is now members-only. Was this email forwarded to you?
Subscribe here or feel free to contact us about membership.
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Medicare Telehealth Extended - December 31, 2027
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Section 6209 extends Medicare telehealth flexibilities through December 31, 2027 and imposes certain modifiers on telehealth services furnished incident to other services and telehealth services furnished via contracts with certain virtual platforms.
The Alliance is working with policymakers to shape the implementation of these new billing requirements.
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Hospital at Home Waiver Extended - September 30, 2030
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Section 6210 extends the Acute Hospital Care at Home initiative through September 30, 2030. The section also establishes the parameters for a new interim study and report on the Acute Hospital Care at Home initiative.
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Section 6211 expands payment options for cardiopulmonary rehabilitation services furnished via telehealth at a beneficiary's home under Medicare between January 31, 2026 and January 1, 2028.
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Virtual Diabetes Prevention Program
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Section 6214 expands participation in the Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP) Expanded Model to virtual until 2030 and allows beneficiaries to participate virtually and in-person. Note: CMS has also taken regulatory action to allow virtual suppliers in the CY 2026 PFS)
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The Alliance continues to urge Congress to advance a permanent policy. We cannot afford to continue a pattern of temporary policy extensions.
Participate in the Alliance for Connected Care to advance access to virtual care. Alliance members, as leaders in the coalition, are instrumental in shaping the policy agenda across Washington DC and the nation. Learn more.
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Alliance Urged Congress to Advance Permanent Telehealth: The Alliance for Connected Care sent a letter to Congressional Leadership, urging a focus on permanent telehealth policy in the upcoming extension package. Permanent or long-term policy continues to be necessary given the previous lapses in access and ongoing uncertainty.
Alliance Led 450 Stakeholders in Request for Long-Term Fix to Medicare Telehealth: Over 450 organizations spanning health care providers, digital health innovators, patient and provider advocacy organizations pressed Congress to immediately act on a long-term telehealth fix to ensure stability and provide clarity for patients, providers and the health care system as a whole. Congress has extended telehealth flexibilities multiple times immediately prior to the looming deadlines. This cycle of temporary fixes has resulted in patients and providers facing continued disruptions in care. Another short-term extension is unacceptable.
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Join the Alliance team in North Carolina for a discussion of the policy and advocacy developments in remote monitoring and tech-enabled care.
Remote patient monitoring/management (RPM) done right is showing significant impact; it is the care architecture required for the next decade of highest quality health care.
📅 When: February 26–27, 2026
📍 Where: Charlotte, NC
Use code "ConnectwithCare" for 10% off your registration.
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Alliance Updates
Drug Enforcement Administration Telehealth – The Alliance led efforts to protect access to medications via telemedicine, pressing the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to establish a permanent framework for the prescribing of appropriate controlled substances via telemedicine, as directed by Congress.
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The DEA extension text and the HHS press release cites a potential scope of impact data brief pulled together by Alliance members.
“To put it into context, one stakeholder summarized unpublished data reviewed by Epic, Johns Hopkins, and Stanford: of an estimated 44.6 million prescriptions for controlled substances prescribed across 258 organizations in 2024, more than 7 million, approximately 16 percent, were issued without a prior in-person medical evaluation”
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The Alliance continues to keep the pressure on, creating urgency for clarity about continued access to care and medications. The DEA published a fourth temporary extension, which provides a one-year extension through December 31, 2026. Read our recent letter here.
Securing Permanent CMS Policy for Provider Location Reporting - The Alliance played a decisive role in making permanent a critical CMS policy that allows clinicians to bill for Medicare telehealth services using an enrolled practice location where they are capable of providing in-person care, even when the clinician is physically located elsewhere, such as their home.
Without action, this flexibility was set to expire on December 31, 2025. When the policy was not addressed in the CY 2026 Physician Fee Schedule, the Alliance intensified engagement with CMS, holding multiple discussions throughout the year and mobilizing stakeholders to underscore the real-world consequences for patient access.
The Alliance continues to work with CMS on a path that allows the same for virtual-only practitioners, particularly those without a physical practice location to report other than a home address. Read our most recent letter here.
Defending and Expanding Remote Patient Monitoring - The Alliance continued its leadership in protecting and strengthening Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM), a cornerstone of modern, patient-centered care.
Building on earlier successes securing Medicare coverage and appropriate payment for RPM services, the Alliance remained on the front lines to defend RPM from disruptive policy changes that could have reduced access or undermined care delivery.
Through sustained engagement, the Alliance engaged with CMS in conversations focused on meaningfully modernizing reimbursement to fully capture inputs of technology-enabled care like RPM.
Alliance Submitted Statements and Comments to
- Michigan state legislators, encouraging them to continue health care access across state lines.
- CMS' Contract Year 2027 Policy and Technical Changes to the Medicare Advantage Program, urging CMS to update network adequacy policies, encourage cross-state licensure, and build on tech-enabled care initiatives, such as the ACCESS Model, in the Medicare Advantage program.
- CMS Health Technology Ecosystem. The Alliance joined the effort as a Friend of the Ecosystem.
- CMS Innovation Center announcement of the Advancing Chronic Care with Effective, Scalable Solutions (ACCESS) Model, applauding CMS as the model is an important first step toward transforming how chronic care is delivered in Medicare and has the potential to become a national standard for technology-enabled, patient-centered care.
- House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee’s hearing on “Modernizing Care Coordination to Prevent and Treat Chronic Disease”, highlighting the important role telehealth plays in improving health care and outcomes for people with chronic conditions.
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Krista Drobac, founder of the Alliance for Connected Care joined host Eve Cunningham, Chief Medical Officer at Cadence, in a conversation on how the Rural Health Transformation Program will converge policy, payment reform, and technology to share rural care delivery.
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Administration
AI in Clinical Care RFI – HHS released a request for information to seek broad public comment on what HHS can do to accelerate the adoption and use of AI as part of clinical care. HHS aims to support the rapid adoption of AI in clinical care, to foster public trust in modern technology solutions, and to align federal incentives so that AI is deployed in ways that benefit patients and providers. Alliance members are working together on a response.
CMS: Updates to Medicare Learning Network (MLN) Booklet (1/15) – CMS released a revised MLN booklet that reviews telehealth and remote patient monitoring updates from the CY 2026 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) and subsequent guidance. The booklet now contains a resource link, permanent provider location flexibilities, clarification for teaching physicians virtual presence, and updates to CPT codes/telehealth services list. These updates several of the Alliance’s advocacy efforts.
ARPA-H: Agentic AI-EnableD CardioVascular CAre TransfOrmation (ADVOCATE) (1/13) – ARPA-H launched an agentic AI program, ADVOCATE, for cardiovascular disease management. The ADVOCATE program aims to transform advanced cardiovascular disease management with an agentic AI system that can provide 24/7 holistic clinical care. ADVOCATE will support the development of clinical AI agents that can be trusted to autonomously adjust changes in appointments, medications, diet, and exercise. The project will also support the development of a supervisory AI "overseer” to monitor clinical AI agents after they have been deployed in clinical practice to ensure their continued safety and efficacy. ADVOCATE is soliciting solution summaries due February 27.
FDA: Clinical Decision Support: Software Guidance for Industry and Food and Drug Administration Staff (1/6) – FDA announced it will soften its approach to the regulation of clinical decision support software, which include AI-enabled products that help doctors navigate diagnoses and treatment options. The agency also will relax its stance on wearables. Agency guidance on general wellness devices clarifies that it will not regulate many devices that measure physiologic parameters that are intended solely for wellness uses.
CMS: Rural Health Transformation Program Awards
(12/29) – CMS announced funding award amounts to all 50 states under the Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP). In 2026, states will receive first-year awards from CMS averaging $200 million, with a range of $147 million to $281 million. All 50 mentioned telehealth and remote monitoring in their applications and/or have announced plans to fund virtual health projects.
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Congress
Rep. Dunn (R-FL): TALK SAFE Act (1/12) – Rep. Dunn (R-FL) introduced the Mental Health TALK SAFE Act of 2026 (H.R. 6994), which would amend the Controlled Substances Act to modify requirements relating to the prescription of controlled substances by means of the internet.
Office of National Drug Control Policy:
Confirmation of Sara Carter (1/6) – Sara Carter was confirmed to be Director of National Drug Control Policy by a vote of 52-48. As ONDCP Director, Carter will play a central role in shaping federal priorities around reducing drug supply and demand, addressing substance use, and coordinating funding and strategy across agencies. Carter has a strong background in drug policy. During her Senate nomination hearing, she emphasized her firsthand experience covering drug cartels and described the fight against illicit drug trafficking as essential to protecting American communities.
Reps. Salinas (D-OR) and Harshbarger (R-TN): Home-Based Telemental Health Care Act (12/17) – Reps. Salinas (D-OR) and Harshbarger (R-TN) introduced the Home-Based Telemental Health Care Act (H.R. 6817), which would establish a home-based telemental health care grant program for purposes of increasing mental health and substance use services in rural medically underserved populations and for individuals in farming, fishing, and forestry occupations.
Sens. Peters (D-MI) and Daines (R-MT): Expand the Behavioral Health Workforce Now Act (12/16) – Sens. Peters (D-MI) and Daines (R-MT) introduced the Expand the Behavioral Health Workforce Now Act (S. 3486), which would issue guidance to states on strategies under Medicaid and CHIP to increase mental health and substance use disorder care provider education, training, recruitment, and retention.
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Telehealth Research, Reports and Surveys
AMA: The Case for Permanent Telehealth Policy and Expanded Access to Virtual Care (1/5) – The AMA released an issue brief urging Congress to enact permanent authorization of Medicare telehealth services and end the repeated cycle of temporary extensions that have undermined reliable access to virtual care.
JAMA Network: Patient Engagement With Home Blood Pressure Monitoring - This cohort study at Mass General Brigham enrolled 3,390 patients with uncontrolled hypertension in a blood pressure management program and received free devices, education, and personalized support. When measuring engagement, about a third of patients recorded no blood pressure readings, and nearly half did not meet the program’s minimum engagement measurement threshold. The study revealed a disconnect between guideline recommendations and real-world measurements, which highlights the need for more accessible, less burdensome monitoring solutions.
American Journal of Managed Care: Telemedicine Utilization and Preventive Services Among a Rural Population – This study showed that the use of telemedicine among a rural population was associated with a higher likelihood of receiving preventive services. In the sample, the relationship between telemedicine use and preventive care varied depending on underlying health conditions, sex, and region of residence. This research showed that telemedicine may be an effective way to encourage appropriate preventive care among rural residents.
JAMA Network: Telehealth vs In-Person Outpatient Mental Health Service Use and Spending Among Medicare Beneficiaries From 2019 to 2023 (1/5) – This study analyzed 9.5 million Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries, focusing on anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and PTSD. Researchers found that telehealth has largely replaced in-person mental health visits for Medicare patients, with spending remaining higher than pre-pandemic levels. Telehealth visits surged during the pandemic, stabilizing at 42.9 percent post-pandemic, with spending on telehealth significantly increasing. Policy changes have made telehealth a permanent option, allowing broader access and enabling various clinicians to bill Medicare for virtual services.
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Telehealth News and Market Developments
MedPage Today: Permanent Telehealth Flexibilities Should Not Be Controversial (1/15) – An internist wrote an op-ed advocating for permanent telehealth flexibility, especially after the lapse in late 2025. He highlighted that telehealth represents a rare innovation that benefits every patient.
TechTarget: Getting Ready for the AI Era of Virtual Healthcare (1/15) - Virtual care experts agreed that health care leaders must be tactical, prioritizing infrastructure, staffing and vendor partnership strategies that support AI integration into virtual care. Some strategies that can help health care provider organizations prepare for an increasingly AI-enabled virtual care arena include creating vetting processes and guardrails, establishing patient and provider trust in AI, incorporating change management into provider training, deploying a vendor selection strategy, and implementing infrastructure that support AI.
Forbes: High Tech, High Touch: How Telehealth Is Reshaping the Future of Care
(1/14) - This article argued that telehealth has evolved from a convenience into core health care infrastructure, with its greatest value coming from pairing advanced technology with human-centered care. Virtual care reduces friction for clinicians, strengthens continuity and trust, expands access for underserved populations, and supports longitudinal, relationship-based care rather than fragmented encounters. The future of health care is a hybrid model where “high tech” enables more meaningful “high touch” care at scale.
Health Leaders: Walmart Makes a Hesitant Return to Virtual Care. Here's Why (1/14) – Walmart announced Better Care Services, which offers members online access to a handful virtual urgent care and behavioral health providers. The impending loss of ACA subsidies and other federal actions could cause millions of Americans to lose access to care, creating new demand for online and alternative access.
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