Resources & Reports

The Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program, which was included in HR 1 and passed earlier this year, will provide $50 billion in funding over a five year period, to help states improve healthcare access, quality and outcomes in rural communities.  Administered through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) was released just yesterday, further informing states of the application process and funding requirements. Additionally, CMS has created a webpage devoted to this program.

CCHP’s September Newsletter is here! This month’s topics include – IMLCC Year 8 Data Study Highlights Physician Licensure Trends; When Health Care Shortages and Broadband Deserts Collide; CMS Proposes Virtual Flexibilities for the Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program; Anthem to End Telehealth Coverage for 173 Services Under Federal Employee Plans; Latest Developments in CCHP’s Telehealth Policy Finder; Remote CBT Programs Show Benefits for Chronic Pain Management.

This edition of The Center for Connected Health Policy’s (CCHP) weekly #TelehealthTuesday is the final edition of our special series on what the Medicare telehealth landscape would look like should the federal Medicare temporary telehealth waivers expire, as they are now set to do on September 30, 2025. While there is still time for some action that could change what is laid out below, as of today, this is the current state of the policies. Additionally, each newsletter in this series has also taken into consideration the impacts of the proposals that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) made within the 2026 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS), if they are adopted as proposed (see CCHP’s fact sheet on the 2026 PFS proposals). In this particular edition, which is focusing on eligible services and audio-only, the 2026 PFS proposals would play a significant role.

And, the special series continues!  In case you haven’t yet seen, this summer the Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP) is running a series in our weekly #TelehealthTuesday newsletters on what Medicare telehealth policy could look like if the current temporary waivers expire as scheduled on September 30, 2025.

Each article in this series takes into account both:

• The potential expiration of the current Medicare telehealth waivers September 30, 2025, and
• The proposals included in the 2026 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS), as released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in July 2025 (assuming they are finalized without major changes).

The Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP) is running a series of newsletters focusing on what will happen to federal Medicare telehealth policy should the current temporary telehealth waivers expire, as they are now set to do on September 30, 2025. This series will appear in our weekly #TelehealthTuesday newsletters, however our regular multi-item newsletters that appear the second week of each month will remain a typical full newsletter. Additionally, each newsletter in this series will also specifically take into consideration what the telehealth Medicare policy landscape would look like if the proposals that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) made in the 2026 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) are adopted as proposed. It is important to highlight that as we move forward, much can still happen to alter what CCHP is laying out in each #TelehealthTuesday edition.