The American Relief Act, 2025, signed into law on December 21, included a short-term extension of certain telehealth waivers that went into effect in the early days of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency. These waivers, for telehealth services provided to Medicare beneficiaries, had been set to expire on December 31, but have now been extended until March 31, 2025.
Among the waivers extended was one allowing Medicare patients to access telehealth services from their homes, or from any other originating sites. Another waiver permits physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech-language pathologists to bill Medicare for telehealth services.
When these waivers expire on April 1, Medicare’s previous telehealth service rules will again be applicable. At that time, the above types of therapists will no longer be approved providers of telehealth services under Medicare, and patients’ homes may not be permissible originating sites, unless further legislative action is taken. However, there is considerable bipartisan support for permanent changes to these (and other) rules to encourage telehealth utilization, so we will see what happens!
