Healthcare Leaders Call for Permanent Medicare Telehealth Coverage

WASHINGTON—Patients, clinicians and healthcare leaders recently delivered the Telehealth Voters Pledge to members of Congress at a Capitol Hill event hosted by the Alliance for Connected Care. The pledge, signed by more than 200 healthcare organizations, clinicians and patient advocacy groups, calls on Congress to end the cycle of short-term extensions and enact permanent Medicare telehealth coverage.

Current telehealth flexibilities are set to expire Friday, Dec. 31, 2027. A previous lapse in coverage in 2025 disrupted care for patients across the country, causing a gap organizers say Congress cannot afford to repeat. The event brought together congressional and healthcare leaders to speak to the urgent need for permanent access and to outline new commitments to build momentum ahead of a fall legislative push.

“We saw what happens when Medicare telehealth coverage lapses; real patients lost real access in 2025,” said Chris Adamec, executive director of the Alliance for Connected Care. “Congress has the evidence, the coalition and the runway to fix this before it happens again. There’s no excuse to wait until this care is about to expire again to act. We’ve patched Medicare telehealth access together with short-term extensions for too long. More than 200 organizations are telling Congress to stop kicking the can down the road and make this permanent.”

Coalition leaders and pledge signatories said they are committing to:

• Raise the urgency of permanent telehealth policy in town halls, debates and public and private forums through the fall
• Educate members, patients and constituencies about the risks and challenges created by the current cycle of short-term Medicare telehealth extensions
• Share patient stories, clinical data and economic evidence that make the case for permanent coverage
• Collaborate across the coalition on shared resources, talking points and advocacy strategy heading into a fall legislative push

“Nearly one in every four Americans, approximately 60 million people, experience a mental illness annually, and right now, there is only one mental health provider for every 340 people in the U.S.,” said Association for Behavioral Health and Wellness (ABHW) President and CEO Debbie Witchey. “Allowing permanent Medicare telehealth services and repealing the mental health services in-person requirement will protect access to care and ensure individuals start or continue their care without disruption.”

Learn more about the Telehealth Voters Pledge and the growing coalition working to make permanent Medicare telehealth a national priority at connectwithcare.org/pledge.