The Military Health System (MHS) policy on telemedicine has been changed according to a memorandum that was issued last month by the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs for the U.S. Department of Defense, Jonathan Woodson, M.D.. The previous law outlined that patients were only able to be treated with telemedicine if they were physically located at a military treatment facility or a designated facility. The difference in the new policy will allow patients to be treated by the MHS via telemedicine in their own homes or “other locations ‘deemed appropriate by the treating provider’,” according to an article put out by Mintz Levin – Health Law & Policy Matters.

In the memorandum, it is noted that one of the MHS’s biggest goals within the past year has been to promote and provide more options for care access to it’s patients. Assistant Secretary Woodson has been a key supporter of telemedicine implementation within the MHS for years. In a 2014 keynote speech at a conference for the American Telemedicine Association, he made it a point to address that as the standards of care are evolving, it’s crucial that the MHS evolve with telehealth as well.

This long awaited policy change is a shift in the right direction towards expanding the Service Members’ Telemedicine and E-Health Portability (STEP) Act of 2011. “While the STEP act removed the requirement that all health care services provided to military members and their families be delivered in a military facility (whether in person or via telemedicine),” the article states, “the Act did not apply to TRICARE providers and did not allow telemedicine to be provided to patients in their home.” This new memorandum eliminates these roadblocks in order to implement expanded use of telemedicine for members of the military as well as their families.

If you’re a Medical or Mental Health professional interested in seeing patients online click below on the “want patients” button to and fill out the form.  OR if you are an organization that has patients that want to be seen via Telemed click on the “Have Patients” button and a representative will get in contact shortly!