Telehealth Model Statute

The foundation of current California telehealth law is the Telemedicine Development Act of 1996 (TDA).  This groundbreaking statute established California as a national leader in telehealth policy, and served as a model for other states' telehealth policies.

The TDA defines telemedicine as “the practice of health care delivery, diagnosis, consultation, treatment, transfer of medical data, and education using interactive audio, video, or data communications.”

The TDA prohibits health plans and health insurers, public and private, from requiring face-to-face contact between patient and provider for services appropriately provided through telemedicine.  This includes Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program.

Subsequent telehealth legislation in California has, for the most part, amended provisions of the original TDA.  Prominent among these TDA amendments is the requirement that Medi-Cal cover tele-ophthalmology and tele-dermatology services delivered via store & forward technologies. 

Telehealth Model Statute 

In February 2011, CCHP issued a telehealth model statute report for California that recommended modernizing state telemedicine and workforce laws, to encourage more robust adoption of telehealth technologies.

The report, “Advancing California’s Leadership in Telehealth Policy:  A Telehealth Model Statute & Other Policy Recommendations,” identified policies that would promote greater use of telehealth technologies, to maximize their benefit to all Californians.

CCHP developed the report for state policy makers, to help remove barriers to the use of telehealth as an integral part of California’s health care system.  It provided California with a platform for the ideal policy environment in telehealth. 

The model statute report made 13 recommendations in four categories:

• Revisions to the state’s Telemedicine Development Act of 1996 (TDA), focusing primarily on financial incentives and informed consent;
• Recommendations to incorporate telehealth into state workforce law;
• Statutory recommendations to promote interoperability of technology and consumer education;
• Recommendations on increasing research and education efforts in telehealth technologies. 

CCHP held a policy briefing on the report and its recommendations Mar. 3 in the State Capital in Sacramento.  Click here to view a video of the briefing.  

Document Downloads
Telehealth Model Statute Full Report
Executive Summary
FAQ
Telehealth Case Studies

Why a Model Statute?

California has been a national leader in developing telehealth technologies to improve health care access and quality, particularly for medically underserved populations.

The TDA, California's telemedicine coverage law, was at the time of its passage a ground-breaking statute. Enactment of the TDA relatively early in the evolution of telemedicine established California as a national policy leader.

In the years since its passage, the TDA has kept pace somewhat with other states—many of which modeled their telehealth laws after it. However, in certain key areas, it has become outdated, and some of its components actually may hinder the uptake of telehealth.

In 2009, CCHP launched an effort to identify policy barriers to telehealth adoption in California. CCHP's work builds on previous efforts by the California Telemedicine and eHealth Center.

CCHP's efforts included:

• Analyzing current California telehealth laws, including a 2010 report on TDA reimbursement;
• Conducting a scan of state and national literature on telehealth policy;
• Holding key informant interviews of practitioners, industry experts, and other telehealth professionals;
• Reviewing telehealth laws in select leading states.

This research pointed to the pressing need to review and update the TDA, and to consider new statutes and regulatory changes to encourage more robust adoption of telehealth technologies in California.

In early 2010, CCHP convened a Telehealth Model Statute Work Group, a diverse group of 25 prominent health care and policy professionals, to guide its efforts. Work Group members studied and debated current California policies, examined available research, and helped hone recommendations for the Model Statute. The Work Group's efforts culminated in the Telehealth Model Statute report.

While this report reflects the Work Group's deliberations, CCHP assumes full responsibility for its content. Work Group members participated as individuals; neither they nor their respective organizations were asked to endorse the report’s policy proposals.