On March 1, 2023, the Drug Enforcement Company (DEA) formally revealed proposed laws for prescribing managed elements by the use of telemedicine after the COVID-19 Public Well being Emergency expires. The DEA gave the general public a 30 day window to put up feedback, and then it’ll factor ultimate laws.

On February 27, 2023, legal professionals from Foley & Lardner’s Telemedicine & Virtual Well being Trade Workforce reviewed the development replica of the proposed rule and revealed a felony guidebook for practitioners, policymakers, and telemedicine firms on what the proposed laws in fact would do. Later that week, on the American Telemedicine Affiliation (ATA) Annual Assembly, loads of stakeholders met to speak about the proposed rule.

The reaction from sufferers, clinicians, policymakers, and trade concept leaders was once swift and loud, with greater than 20,000 feedback submitted at the proposed rule (a “tsunami of grievance”). Main skilled associations, revered assume tanks, and skilled clinicians submitted compelling and remarkable remark letters explaining how the proposed rule will lead to boundaries on get right of entry to to care, hurt sufferers in rural and concrete spaces alike, and most probably lead to differently avoidable overdoses and deaths when sufferers are denied get right of entry to to their medically-important drugs. (As examples, see feedback from ATA and ATA Motion right here and right here, feedback from Brookings right here, and a New York Instances opinion piece right here.)

Legal professionals from Foley & Lardner’s Telemedicine & Virtual Well being Trade Workforce ready a remark letter for submission as neatly. Learn a replica of the feedback right here.

Make Your Voice Heard: Learn how to Put up Feedback to the DEA

DEA is soliciting feedback till 11:59 p.m. on March 31, 2023. Somebody would possibly put up feedback – anonymously or differently – by the use of digital submission at this hyperlink. When commenting, check with “Docket No. DEA-407” on all correspondence, together with attachments. Then again, commenters would possibly put up feedback through mail to:

• Drug Enforcement Management, Attn: DEA Federal Check in Consultant/DPW, 8701 Morrissette Power, Springfield, VA 22152.

Conclusion

The DEA proposed a fancy rule with many technical options that may deeply have an effect on a cohort of sufferers whose scientific care relies on their drugs. The DEA gave the general public most effective 30 days to remark at the proposals, and then DEA will get ready ultimate laws. Suppliers, amenities, generation firms, skilled associations, and sufferers themselves will have to imagine filing feedback to make your voices heard. 

For more info on telemedicine, telehealth, digital care, far flung affected person tracking, virtual well being, and different well being inventions, together with the workforce, publications, and consultant revel in, consult with Foley’s Telemedicine & Virtual Well being Trade Workforce.