A new bill presented to the Congress looks at permanently allowing healthcare providers to use telehealth in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) programs for the purpose of substance abuse and extend Medicare coverage for audio-only phone calls.

The two policy changes will be a part of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) 2.0 bill introduced by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Rob Portman (R-OH), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI).

The purpose:

Portman noted that the COVID-19 pandemic created unforeseen challenges and we now see a surge in overdose deaths. Thus, efforts have to be redoubled to combat addiction and help people through the crisis.  

About the bill:

The bill will let providers to prescribe medications in MAT therapy without an in-person exam. Providers have been constrained by this restriction, which was put in place by Ryan Haight Act of 2008. The bill needed a special registration process for providers who wish to utilize telehealth.

Telehealth can assist in treating substance use disorders. This process was managed by the US Drug Enforcement Agency but the registration process was never created inspite of intense lobbying.

The Ryan Haight Act and the SUPPORT Act laid the foundation for a special registration allowing providers to prescribe, deliver, distribute and dispense a controlled substance to patients without an in-person examination.

The purpose behind these registrations is to let providers to use connected health platforms, which includes MAT therapy. This helps to treat patients suffering from substance abuse who don’t have access to in-person treatment.

Registrations will have certain conditions:

• Providers should have a legitimate need for special registration.

• They have to be registered in order to deliver, distribute, dispense or prescribe controlled substances in the same state where the patient is located.

• They should comply with federal and state laws when they deliver, distribute, dispense and prescribe a controlled substance.

The CARA 2.0 bill will let providers to use audio-only telehealth platforms while treating substance abuse only when they’ve first met in-person with the patient.