Sen. Udall Drafting Bill To Kill Telemedicine Barriers

Mary Mosquera | Government Health IT | February 2, 2012

Sen. Tom Udall (D-Utah) anticipates introducing a bill this spring to make it easier for physicians to practice telemedicine in many states instead of applying for a separate license for each state.

The bill, which is still being drafted, would streamline licensure portability across state lines, according to Fern Goodhart, Udall’s legislative assistant.

“Telemedicine is medicine, just practiced virtually,” she said at a Jan. 31 Capitol Hill briefing sponsored by the American Telemedicine Association (ATA), which advocates for use of remote medical technologies.