Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: Alaska bill would promote competition for telehealth services, FTC staff says, (Mar 28, 2016)

By Linda O’Brien, J.D., LL.M.

A legislative proposal that would allow licensed Alaska physicians located out-of-state to provide telehealth services in the same manner as in-state physicians represents a procompetitive improvement in Alaska’s telehealth law, said the staffs of the FTC’s Office of Policy Planning, Bureau of Competition, and Bureau of Economics, in a comment submitted as public testimony on March 25 to the Alaska legislature.

The staff noted that Telehealth—the use of telecommunications to provide health care services to remotely located patients—readily crosses jurisdictional boundaries. Due to the state’s vast size, rural nature, and harsh conditions, telehealth has long been a main method of delivering Alaskan health care.

Under current Alaska law, out-of-state physicians are generally precluded from providing telehealth services because only physicians located in the state are allowed to prescribe medications without conducting a physical examination. The proposed legislation, a part of Senate Bill 74 (SB 74), would expand the availability of telehealth services by eliminating that in-state requirement. It also would allow certain Alaska-licensed behavioral health professionals to provide services remotely.

Alaska has a longstanding and significant shortage of primary care and specialty physicians, including psychiatrists and non-physician behavioral health providers. The largest shortages are in rural Alaska. These shortages are exacerbated by the difficulty of recruiting physicians to a region with an extreme climate that is distant from the rest of the United States. For many years, the comment notes, telehealth has played a role in responding to the challenges of provider shortages and caring for patients in remote, geographically isolated locations.

According to the comment, the provisions of SB 74 that would allow out-of-state as well as in-state Alaska licensees to provide telehealth services without an in-person examination would likely increase the supply of telehealth providers, enhance competition, and reduce health care costs. SB 74 could also help to reduce travel costs for both patients and providers in Alaska. Telehealth services are not only convenient for many Alaskans; they may be a virtual necessity for patients in remote areas.

FTC staff recommends that the legislature consider whether there are any legitimate health or safety justifications for prohibiting physicians licensed in Alaska, but located out of state, from providing telehealth services in the same manner as in-state physicians. By eliminating the “in-state” requirement, SB 74 would likely expand the supply of telehealth providers, promote competition, and increase access to safe and cost-effective care. The elimination of the in-state requirement by SB 74 appears to be a procompetitive improvement in the law that would benefit Alaska health care consumers, including its most vulnerable populations, the comment concludes.

News: Antitrust FederalTradeCommissionNews