State Telemedicine Policy Information
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Oregon Telemedicine Policy
Oregon Telemedicine Policy
Oregon’s Medicaid programs are one of the few that will reimburse for email and telephone under its telehealth policy. Oregon’s interstate practice laws are still a little restrictive, and with no legislation proposed for joining the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact, we don’t know how long it could take for those policies to change.
State Policy Overview
Medicaid
Yes
Private Payer
Yes
Parity
Yes
Additional State Telemedicine Info
Parity Laws
Oregon’s telemedicine parity law includes mandates for private payers and, as of June 2015, state employee health plans! However, it’s parity law specifically only covers live video telemedicine, and not other forms of care. A telemedicine parity law requires private payers to reimburse telemedicine services in the same way as in-person services.
Medicaid
Oregon’s Medicaid program defines telemedicine as “the use of medical information, exchanged from one site to another, via telephonic or electronic communications, to improve a patient’s health status.” The agency covers live video telemedicine, and store-and-forward technology when used in lieu of live video. The program is also unique for covering email and telephone when used for patient consulting.
Type Of Telemedicine Covered
Oregon’s parity law mandates that private insurers and state employee health plans provide coverage for live video telemedicine.
Oregon Medicaid will reimburse for live video, as well as email and telephone when used for patient consulting or when videoconferencing availability is limited. According to the agency’s Behavioral Health Services Manual, store-and-forward solutions may be covered when there are issues or access barriers to videoconferencing technology.
Covered Health Services
Oregon state law does not limit what medical services can be treated via telemedicine.
Eligible Healthcare Providers
Oregon does not specify which healthcare providers can practice telemedicine.
Online Prescriptions
In order to ePrescribe, a physician must first establish a physician-patient relationship. Physicians are not allowed to prescribe medications based solely on an internet consult.
Informed Patient Consent
No consent requirements are stated or have been written into law. However, we always recommend getting consent before starting a virtual visit.
Cross-State Telemedicine Licensing
While Oregon is not yet part of the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact, the state allows qualifying out-of-state physicians to applying for a full license or a telemedicine permit to practice in Oregon.
Restrictions On Locations
Oregon’s originating site location restrictions were just removed in June 2015. Additionally, plans may not distinguish between originating sites that are rural and urban in providing coverage.
Reimbursement Rates
Reimbursement rates for telemedicine services are on par with rates for in-person services.
Billing Codes
Note sure how to bill for telemedicine services through Oregon Medicaid? You can find the agency’s billing guidelines here.
Don’t forget your GT modifier! Providers should use the GT modifier if an evaluation was made by a synchronous (live and interactive) transmission.