Bill Text: HI HB2195 | 2010 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Telemedicine; Physicians and Surgeons; Regulations
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-01-22 - (H) Referred to HLT, CPC/JUD, FIN, referral sheet 3 [HB2195 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2010-HB2195-Introduced.html
|
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.B. NO. |
2195 |
|
TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2010 |
|
|
|
STATE OF HAWAII |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
||
A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO TELEHEALTH.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. Advances in telecommunication technology have radically changed the ways in which people relate to one another and interact with the world around them. Time and distance, once prohibitive obstacles to the ebb and flow of commerce and communication, are no longer seen as the major impediments they once were. Whether it is a consumer ordering goods from an internet vendor, business real-time teleconferencing, or friendships forged across continents, telecommunication technology impact all our lives.
One area in which advanced telecommunication technology has made tremendous strides is in the development of telemedicine. In the past, the physician-patient relationship was bound by in-office, face-to-face encounters. With the advent of advanced telecommunication processes, an "office visit" can be an electronic encounter. This is particularly important in rural and medically underserved areas of the State where access to medical care and services may be limited; where consultations with medical specialists or utilization of specialized services could mean the difference between life and death; for first-responders providing emergency care or disaster relief; and for persons with chronic conditions requiring constant monitoring while traveling or on extended leave.
The future of telecommunications in health care is almost limitless. "Telemedicine" is generally associated with services provided by physicians and surgeons; yet other health care professionals could conceivably benefit from the use of telecommunications in their health care practices. The term "telehealth" has been coined to encompass not only telemedicine, but also services by these other professions, including nursing, mental and behavioral health, speech language and audiology, dietitians, and occupational therapy.
Given the geographic isolation of our islands, as well as the disparity of health care services between urban and rural areas of the State, the legislature finds that Hawaii is ripe for the development and use of telehealth services for our citizens. The legislature finds, however, that the concerns, as well as the promises, of telehealth services must be appropriately studied to ensure the safety and welfare of our citizens and visitors alike.
The purpose of this Act, therefore, is to require the Hawaii medical board to conduct a study on telemedicine and telehealth.
SECTION 2. (a) The Hawaii medical board, in consultation with the telehealth community, shall review issues and concerns relating to telemedicine and telehealth, including:
(1) Legal authority of out-of-state health care providers when providing telehealth services, including the provision of prompt and accurate information to out-of-state providers on this State's standards and requirements for specific services to be performed and limits to an out-of-state provider's scope of practice;
(2) Enforcement and oversight of services of out-of-state practitioners who are not required to be licensed by the State when providing telehealth services;
(3) Insurance and other third-party payer reimbursements for telehealth services, including medicare reimbursements;
(4) Liability and malpractice insurance coverage for telehealth services;
(5) Limitations, if any, on the prescription of controlled substances;
(6) Mandated use of an electronic medical records system; and
(7) Expansion of telehealth services authorization to other health care providers, including but not limited to nursing, mental and behavioral health, speech language and audiology, dietitians, and occupational therapy.
(b) The Hawaii medical board shall also review different approaches used by other states to incorporate telehealth services into their licensing laws. These options shall include but not be limited to:
(1) Exemption from licensure for services rendered by an out-of-state physician to a patient in Hawaii;
(2) Granting a Hawaii license by endorsement or effecting reciprocity agreements with other states when an out-of-state physician provides services to a patient in Hawaii; and
(3) Entering into interstate compacts that provide for a special multi-state license to physicians while providing telehealth services.
(c) The Hawaii medical board shall submit its findings, recommendations, and proposed legislation, if any, to the legislature, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2011.
SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
|
INTRODUCED BY: |
_____________________________ |
|
|
|
Report Title:
Telemedicine; Physicians and Surgeons; Regulations
Description:
Requires the Hawaii medical board to review issues relating to telemedicine and telehealth, including license portability or reciprocity. Report to legislature in 2011.
The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
