Dr. Lisa Ravindra conducts a remote monitoring telehealth visit with patient Jenny Thomas, top of screen, at Rush River North in Chicago, on Oct. 5, 2020.David Ingram
At Johns Hopkins Medicine, some patients and their families are now having to switch doctors or drive hours to a different state when previously a video call from their home would have been allowed under the looser regulations, said Dr. Brian Hasselfeld, the health system’s medical director for digital health and telemedicine.
A year ago, 26 states still had in place pandemic-era waivers that allowed residents to have virtual visits with a doctor who’s based in another state, according to the Federation of State Medical Boards, an organization that represents the licensing boards in U.S. states and territories.Now, only 12 states still have their pandemic-era waivers, according to the federation.
Linda Branagan, the director of telehealth programs, at the University of California, San Francisco, said the current situation of state laws and regulations changing so rapidly was “operationally untenable,” especially when patients are often in such a vulnerable position. The reappearance of such barriers for physicians doesn’t affect in-state video visits or some calls with other medical professionals or nurses, but it’s still a common issue, especially for certain medical specialties or for in-demand doctors who are used to seeing patients from around the country.
And that’s because they are afraid of Trump, afraid he will win again. Afraid he will come back.
Oh look, the government is standing in the way of Healthcare... again... still
I think this is best for the people bc you never know in this time of DE-regulation when the one treating you may not even be in health care.
Oh no! This was a very helpful idea and vital for some. Although I’ve never had to use it, I’d want the option to continue. The pandemic isn’t over and there are other reasons, notwithstanding the pandemic.
Most drs don’t like to diagnosis something that they can’t accurately examine.