Bill Text: TX HB1021 | 2025-2026 | 89th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to telemedicine medical services and telehealth services covered by certain health benefit plans or provided by a pharmacist.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (Introduced) 2025-03-07 - Referred to Insurance [HB1021 Detail]
Download: Texas-2025-HB1021-Introduced.html
| 89R3206 MEW/BEE-D | ||
| By: Shaheen | H.B. No. 1021 | |
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| relating to telemedicine medical services and telehealth services | ||
| covered by certain health benefit plans or provided by a | ||
| pharmacist. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Section 1455.001(1-a), Insurance Code, is | ||
| amended to read as follows: | ||
| (1-a) "Health professional" means: | ||
| (A) a physician; | ||
| (B) an individual who is: | ||
| (i) licensed or certified in this state to | ||
| perform health care services; and | ||
| (ii) authorized to assist: | ||
| (a) a physician in providing | ||
| telemedicine medical services that are delegated and supervised by | ||
| the physician; or | ||
| (b) a dentist in providing | ||
| teledentistry dental services that are delegated and supervised by | ||
| the dentist; | ||
| (C) a licensed or certified health professional, | ||
| including a mental health professional, acting within the scope of | ||
| the license or certification who does not perform a telemedicine | ||
| medical service or a teledentistry dental service; [ |
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| (D) a dentist; or | ||
| (E) an individual who is credentialed to provide | ||
| qualified mental health professional community services, has | ||
| demonstrated and documented competency in the work to be performed, | ||
| and: | ||
| (i) holds a bachelor's or more advanced | ||
| degree from an accredited institution of higher education with a | ||
| minimum number of hours that is equivalent to a major in psychology, | ||
| social work, medicine, nursing, rehabilitation, counseling, | ||
| sociology, human growth and development, physician assistant | ||
| studies, gerontology, special education, educational psychology, | ||
| early childhood education, or early childhood intervention; | ||
| (ii) is a registered nurse; or | ||
| (iii) completes an alternative | ||
| credentialing process identified by the Health and Human Services | ||
| Commission. | ||
| SECTION 2. Section 554.005, Occupations Code, is amended by | ||
| adding Subsection (d) to read as follows: | ||
| (d) In implementing Subsection (a)(3)(C)(iv), the board may | ||
| not require the in-person counseling of patients. | ||
| SECTION 3. Chapter 1455, Insurance Code, as amended by this | ||
| Act, applies only to a health benefit plan delivered, issued for | ||
| delivery, or renewed on or after January 1, 2026. A health benefit | ||
| plan delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed before January 1, | ||
| 2026, is governed by the law as it existed immediately before the | ||
| effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for | ||
| that purpose. | ||
| SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. | ||
