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Expanded Telehealth Access Act
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to expand the scope of practitioners eligible for payment for telehealth services under the Medicare program, and for other purposes.
Summary
- Expands Medicare payment for telehealth services to include occupational therapist assistants under the supervision of qualified occupational therapists
- Expands Medicare payment for telehealth services to include physical therapist assistants under the supervision of qualified physical therapists
- Adds qualified audiologists to the practitioners eligible for Medicare payment for telehealth services
- Adds qualified speech-language pathologists to the practitioners eligible for Medicare payment for telehealth services
- Adds facilities furnishing certain services to the providers eligible for Medicare payment for telehealth services
- Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to specify additional providers or suppliers enrolled in Medicare to furnish telehealth services
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
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![Sen. Daines, Steve [R-MT]](https://media.civicgate.org/people/d/politicians/D000618.thumb.jpg)
Sen. Daines, Steve (R-MT)
1 cosponsor
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![Sen. Smith, Tina [D-MN]](https://media.civicgate.org/people/d/politicians/S001203.thumb.jpg)
Sen. Smith, Tina (D-MN)
Money behind the sponsor
Top reported contributors to Steve Daines’s campaign committee (2024 cycle) — who funds the bill’s sponsor, not a claim about this bill. Data from FEC.
- Employer not reported $80,381
- ANDREESSEN HOROWITZ $19,800
- APOLLO MANAGEMENT $15,400
- SIERRA PACIFIC INDUSTRIES $12,000
- FLORA FARMS $10,000
Organizations whose employees gave the most — itemized individual contributions grouped by the donor’s reported employer (FEC Schedule A). Full finance for Steve Daines → · Outside spending →
Actions (2)
- Feb 11, 2026 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. · senate
- Feb 11, 2026 Introduced in Senate
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Full text
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 11, 2026
Mr. Daines (for himself and Ms. Smith) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance
A BILL
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to expand the scope of practitioners eligible for payment for telehealth services under the Medicare program, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Expanded Telehealth Access Act”.
SEC. 2. EXPANDING THE SCOPE OF PRACTITIONERS ELIGIBLE FOR PAYMENT FOR TELEHEALTH SERVICES UNDER MEDICARE.
Section 1834(m) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (2)(A)—
(A) by inserting “(or, in the case of an occupational therapy assistant described in paragraph
(4)(E)(ii)(II) or a physical therapist assistant described in paragraph (4)(E)(ii)(III), shall pay with respect to such assistant)” before “located at a distant site”; and
(B) by inserting “(or, in the case of an occupational therapy assistant described in paragraph
(4)(E)(ii)(II) or a physical therapist assistant described in paragraph (4)(E)(ii)(III), the amount that would have been paid under this title with respect to such assistant)” after “would have been paid under this title”;
(2) in paragraph (3)(B), by striking “under such section” and inserting “described in subparagraph (C) of such section”; and
(3) in paragraph (4), by striking subparagraph (E) and inserting the following:
“(E) Practitioner.—The term ‘practitioner’ means any of the following:
“(i) A practitioner described in section 1842(b)(18)(C).
“(ii) With respect to services furnished on or after the date of the enactment of the Expanded Telehealth Access Act—
“(I) a qualified audiologist (as defined in section 1861(ll)(4)(B));
“(II) a qualified occupational therapist and an occupational therapy assistant under the supervision of a qualified occupational therapist;
“(III) a qualified physical therapist and a physical therapist assistant under the supervision of a qualified physical therapist;
“(IV) a qualified speech-language pathologist (as defined in section 1861(ll)(4)(A));
“(V) a facility that furnishes services described in paragraph (8) or
(9) of section 1833(a) through telehealth; and
“(VI) any additional provider of services or supplier, as specified by the Secretary, who is enrolled under section 1866(j) and furnishes a telehealth service.”. <all>
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