President Donald Trump has said that his administration will waive certain federal rules to facilitate more doctors to provide care remotely by using video chats and other services. This move aims at increasing number of doctors participating in telehealth programs to ease practising in states other than where they are licensed.

Governors require utilizing their emergency powers to give those doctors permission to practise in their states, said Krista Drobac, executive director of the Alliance for Connected Care, a telehealth industry group.

Lee Schwamm, vice president for virtual care at Mass General's parent, Partners HealthCare said, health care workers at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston are using iPads to IV poles to create makeshift video portals to communicate with patients in isolation rooms.

George Washington University Hospital in Washington, DC is focusing on rolling out its telemedicine services as a response to the coronavirus as soon as next weekend, according to Neal Sikka, the university medical school's associate professor of emergency medicine. The hospital will utilize virtual options to help doctor guidance on coronavirus symptoms and questions. Also, these options will determine if the patient requires visiting a clinic or emergency room for testing.

These efforts show how telehealth, which has been used by wealthy people since it is convenient and by rural Americans as a critical stop-gap is now suddenly set to go mainstream.

Three factors driving these changes are:

• The need to triage the increasing numbers of Americans seeking care in emergency rooms and clinics in order to have their fever and cough checked out.

• The need to keep corona virus patients isolated from others, including healthcare workers.

• Necessity to take care of existing patients in the midst of rising number of new patients.

As treating coronavirus needs more medical resources, many Americans may soon be accustomed to routine interactions with doctors over text messages, online videos or even automated systems.