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H.R. 2948: Medicare Telehealth Parity Act of 2015

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H.R. 2948: Medicare Telehealth Parity Act of 2015

114th Congress · introduced 2015-07-07 · Health · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2015-07-07 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. Thompson, Mike [D-CA-5] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Medicare Telehealth Parity Act of 2015

Plain summary

Medicare Telehealth Parity Act of 2015 Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to expand telehealth coverage in three phases. Extends the term "originating site," for telehealth service payment purposes, to additional sites, including any federally qualified health center and any rural health clinic, at which the eligible telehealth individual is located at the time the service is furnished via a telecommunications system. Prohibits application of the originating site facility fee to the additional sites. Authorizes additional telehealth providers, including a certified diabetes educator or licensed respiratory therapist, audiologist, occupational therapist, physical therapist, or speech language pathologist. Authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop payment methods to apply in the case of anyone who would be an eligible telehealth individual except that the telehealth services are furnished at a site other than an originating site. Extends Medicare coverage to remote patient management services for certain chronic health conditions. Authorizes home telehealth sites as additional originating sites. Requires the monthly fee or other basis of payment for physicians' services to individuals with end stage renal disease (ESRD) to allow for a patient-specific waiver process to permit a physician, clinical nurse specialist, nurse practitioner, or physician's assistant to request a waiver of face-to-face visit requirements for home dialysis of ESRD patients. Requires all ESRD patients receiving home dialysis to receive a face-to-face examination at least once every three consecutive months and, in the intervening months, to receive a monthly clinical assessment which may be furnished, if the patient so chooses, via remote monitoring by a physician, clinical nurse specialist, nurse practitioner, or physician's assistant. Directs HHS, in determining the component of a physician's fee corresponding to practice expense relative value units for diagnostic tests provided remotely, to include in direct costs of supplies and equipment the costs of the diagnostic device, clinical systems (including hardware and software), information transmission, and device delivery and installation. Directs the Government Accountability Office to study the effectiveness of using specified telehealth services between therapy providers and patients, any associated savings, and the potential for greater use of telehealth services for other forms of therapy.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Medicare Telehealth Parity Act of 2015

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Thompson, Mike [D-CA-5] · 67 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Peter Welch (D-VT), Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Ryan K. Zinke (R-MT), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (D-GA), Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), Terri A. Sewell (D-AL), Frederica S. Wilson (D-FL), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Dina Titus (D-NV), John B. Larson (D-CT), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Sam Graves (R-MO), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Jared Huffman (D-CA), Pete Aguilar (D-CA), Judy Chu (D-CA), Scott H. Peters (D-CA), Tom Emmer (R-MN), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and 7 more.

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Thompson, Mike [D-CA-5] reported raising $5.5 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)
Securities
Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong114-hr2948 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114