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S. 1636 118th Congress Senate

Protecting Rural Telehealth Access Act

Official title: A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to protect access to telehealth services under the Medicare program.

Introduced: May 30, 2023 See on congress.gov
Health Health care coverage and accessHealth facilities and institutionsHealth information and medical recordsHealth technology, devices, supplies
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Home and outpatient careInternet, web applications, social mediaMedicareMental healthRural conditions and developmentSound recording
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This bill died when the 118th Congress ended
It never became law before the 118th Congress (2023–2024) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
May 17, 2023
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
May 17, 2023
Introduced in Senate
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 Latest action May 17, 2023

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Protecting Rural Telehealth Access Act

This bill expands coverage of telehealth services under Medicare.

Specifically, the bill permanently (1) removes geographic restrictions on originating sites (i.e., the location of the beneficiary), (2) allows the home of the beneficiary to serve as the originating site for all services, (3) allows federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics to serve as the distant site (i.e., the location of the health care practitioner), and (4) expands coverage to include audio-only services for evaluation and management and behavioral health services.

 Related & companion bills 1
  • HR 3440 Identical bill Protecting Rural Telehealth Access Act
 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 1
 Cosponsors 5
All 5 Democratic 1 Republican 4
R
Capito, Shelley Moore
West Virginia · May 30, 2023
 R
Cramer, Kevin
North Dakota · May 30, 2023
 R
Ernst, Joni
Iowa · May 17, 2023
 R
Moran, Jerry
Kansas · May 17, 2023
 D
Shaheen, Jeanne
New Hampshire · May 17, 2023
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). S. 1636: Protecting Rural Telehealth Access Act. 118th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/118-S-1636/
MLA
"S. 1636: Protecting Rural Telehealth Access Act." 118th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/118-S-1636/.
Bluebook (legal)
S. 1636, 118th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/118-S-1636/.
Markdown link
[S. 1636: Protecting Rural Telehealth Access Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/118-S-1636/)
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