SECTION 1.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(1) Telehealth is an effective means to ensure patients can access safe and effective health care regardless of location.
(2) Electronic consultation services, which are also referred to as “e-consults,” are a method of telehealth used to provide patient-centered care and improve treating or requesting providers’ ability to better manage their patients’ care.
(3) The State Department of Health Care Services has an existing telehealth policy that allows for reimbursement for e-consult services delivered by consultant providers
who are usually specialists.
(4) However, under that policy, reimbursement is not authorized for any requesting or treating providers, who are usually primary care providers. Moreover, federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics are prohibited from seeking reimbursement for e-consult services that their requesting or treating and consultant providers render.
(5) Current department policy limits the use of e-consult services, and thereby hinders access to care. These services provide a critical way to improve access to care in California’s safety net.
(6) E-consult services offer benefits to patients, including improved specialty visit wait times and patient satisfaction rates, and reduced costs associated with in-person office visits, including patient travel time, time off work, and associated
required childcare.
(7) E-consult services offer benefits to primary care providers, including reinforcing the medical home, improving provider satisfaction, and addressing current and future patient issues through specialist consultation obtained through e-consult services.
(8) E-consult services also benefit specialists by improving the readiness and appropriateness of referrals, reducing no-show rates, improving provider satisfaction, and bettering overall access to specialty care.
(b) Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would do both of the following:
(1) Ensure coverage and utilization of e-consult services under the Medi-Cal program.
(2) Recognize
the benefits of e-consult services that have been found to have particular impact on the safety net population, including Medi-Cal beneficiaries and uninsured Californians.