The Expiration of Telehealth Extensions

The most recent telehealth extension is set to expire on Monday, March 31, 2025. Along with our coalition partners, we have engaged congressional leaders to highlight the critical need for telehealth services, particularly in rural communities, and we encourage you to do the same.

Many Medicare telehealth flexibilities established during the COVID-19 public health emergency have been extended through Monday, March 31, 2025. However, some behavioral health provisions have been made permanent:

• Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) can permanently serve as a Medicare distant site provider for behavioral/mental telehealth services.
• Medicare patients can permanently receive telehealth services for behavioral/mental health care in their home.
• There are no geographic restrictions for originating sites for Medicare behavioral/mental telehealth services permanently.
• Behavioral/mental telehealth services in Medicare can permanently be delivered using audio-only communication platforms.
• Marriage and family therapists and mental health counselors can permanently serve as Medicare distant site providers.
• An in-person visit within six months of an initial Medicare behavioral/mental telehealth service, and annually thereafter, is not required through Monday, March 31, 2025. For FQHCs and RHCs, the in-person visit requirement for mental health services furnished via communication technology to beneficiaries in their homes is not required until Thursday, January 1, 2026.

Get more information.

If you have any questions or are interested in getting involved in our advocacy efforts, please reach out to our team at advocacy@counseling.org.