Consumers with health saving accounts and high-deducible health plans would be able to continue to access telehealth services without having to meet their minimum deductible under legislation reintroduced in Congress last week.

"During the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth became an important tool used by families, seniors and rural communities to access quality, affordable health care," said Rep. Michelle Steel, R-Calif. "The expiration of the CARES Act provision will negatively impact more than 32 million HSA enrollees and 20% of the American workforce who currently enjoy the option to utilize telehealth. I am proud to lead this commonsense bipartisan measure to permanently expand access to telemedicine."

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The Telehealth Expansion Act would make permanent a waiver created by the CARES Act, which was signed into law during the pandemic in March 2020. It allowed individuals to choose and purchase the use of telehealth services outside their high-deductible health plan without affecting their HSA eligibility. An extension of the waiver was included in the most recent end-of-year omnibus bill, along with other telehealth extension provisions, but is set to expire at the end of 2024.