Funding Law Extends Medicare Telehealth to 2027 and Hospital-at-Home to 2030

Medicare's pandemic-era telehealth flexibilities and its hospital-at-home waiver are back in force for years rather than months, after President Donald Trump signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 7148) on February 3. The law extends the telehealth flexibilities through December 31, 2027 and the Acute Hospital Care at Home program through September 30, 2030, according to a statement from Rep. Vern Buchanan, who chairs the House Ways and Means health subcommittee.

Both programs had lapsed over the weekend when a partial government shutdown took effect, TechTarget's Virtual Healthcare reported. The House narrowly passed the funding package on February 3 and the president signed it soon after, ending a four-day partial shutdown, the outlet said. The Senate had passed the package on January 30.

What the law extends

Buchanan said the telehealth provision removes geographic restrictions and expands originating sites under Medicare, so beneficiaries can continue to receive telehealth services through the end of 2027. A separate provision extends the hospital-at-home program, which lets eligible patients receive hospital-level care at home, for five years.

The American Telemedicine Association's advocacy arm, ATA Action, listed further digital-health provisions in the package: in-home cardiopulmonary rehabilitation flexibilities through January 1, 2028; inclusion of virtual diabetes suppliers in the Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program through December 31, 2029; and a requirement that HHS issue guidance within one year on furnishing telehealth services to people with limited English proficiency.

The package also lets the home health face-to-face visit be performed via telehealth, Home Health Care News reported, but withholds telehealth flexibilities from hospice providers in some circumstances, including areas where CMS has placed a moratorium on enrolling hospices. The National Alliance for Care at Home said it was “concerned” about those limits, according to the outlet.

Advocates turn to permanence

The extensions follow a year of short-term renewals. Home Health Care News noted that regulatory uncertainty had caused a “wait and see” moment in the hospital-at-home industry.

“These extensions provide critical stability and certainty for patients and healthcare providers but also underscore the work still ahead,” said Alexis Apple, deputy executive director of ATA Action. She said the group will use the next two years to “continue to push for permanent telehealth policy solutions.”

Krista Drobac, executive director of the advocacy group Moving Health Home, told TechTarget that “this five-year extension is a critical step toward making hospital-at-home a durable part of our health care system.”