On Feb. 3, 2026, President Donald Trump signed into law the FY 2026 appropriations bill, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026, which extends pandemic-era Medicare telehealth flexibilities through Dec. 31, 2027. Congress originally implemented the telehealth flexibilities in 2020 during the public health emergency to increase access to care and has extended them multiple times. The key Medicare flexibilities Congress extended through 2027 include:
- removing geographic requirements and expanding originating sites for telehealth services, allowing patients to receive telehealth services in their homes;
- expanding the types of practitioners eligible to furnish telehealth services, including physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists and audiologists (who will not be able to bill for such services after 2027);
- allowing Federally Qualified Health Centers and Rural Health Clinics to serve as distant site providers of telehealth services;
- delaying the in-person visit requirement within six months of the initial telehealth service and annually thereafter for mental health services (which are otherwise permanently allowed without geographic or originating site restrictions, other than the in-person requirement resuming after 2027);
- allowing for the furnishing of audio-only telehealth services;
- extending use of telehealth to conduct face-to-face encounters prior to the recertification for hospice care; and
- requiring the establishment of codes or modifiers for telehealth services furnished through a telehealth virtual platform and incident to a physician’s or practitioner’s professional services.
In the FY 2026 appropriations bill, Congress also extended certain related provisions that would have otherwise expired Jan. 30, 2026. These extensions include the hospital-at-home waiver program, which Congress extended through Sept. 30, 2030, and in-home cardiopulmonary rehabilitation through Dec. 31, 2027. Further, Congress required the secretary of Health and Human Services to develop guidance on furnishing services via telehealth to individuals with limited English proficiency within one year. Finally, Congress also required a report on wearable medical devices within 18 months. These reports and information developed in 2027 from the required modifiers for telehealth may play a role in future Medicare coverage for telehealth services.
Until Congress enacts a standalone bill to make these measures permanent, healthcare providers furnishing services to Medicare beneficiaries may continue to take advantage of these flexibilities through the end of 2027. Telehealth providers may look to the updated Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Telehealth FAQs (updated Feb. 4, 2026, after enactment) for additional information on ways to utilize the extended flexibilities to expand access to care, and to confirm that telehealth services furnished during the brief Jan. 30 to Feb. 3 lapse will be paid, consistent with CMS’ approach during the fall shutdown.
McGuireWoods continuously monitors CMS developments affecting telehealth providers and related stakeholders. For more information, contact one of the authors or a member of the Healthcare Compliance, Regulatory & Policy Practice Group.