DOJ & FTC Join Telemedicine Attack on Texas Medical Board

The U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission have sided with Teledoc, Inc., one of the country’s biggest telemedicine companies, in its legal battle with the Texas Medical Board.  The two agencies filed a joint amicus brief with a double-barrel argument against the Board’s appeal to the Fifth …

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FTC Wants to be a Champion for Telemedicine Providers

In a public comment supporting Alaska’s proposed telemedicine legislation, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) reiterated its broad support for telemedicine services, quoting its own 2004 analysis: “When used properly, telemedicine has considerable promise as a mechanism to broaden access, lower …

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Texas Telemedicine Provider Survives Another Round

Teledoc, a telehealth services provider looking to do business in Texas, continued its winning streak in Texas federal court: on Monday, a judge rejected the Texas Medical Board’s motion to dismiss Teledoc’s antitrust challenge to the Board’s new rule requiring a “face-to-face visit or in-person …

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A Recap of National Health IT Week

National Health IT Week wrapped up on Friday.  This may have been the most eventful week in the ten year history of the event, which is organized by the Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS).  Below are a few of the highlights (each of which could likely carry its own blog post): Stage 3 …

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Minnesota Joins 9-State Compact Expediting Telemedicine Across State Lines

Effective July 1, 2015, Minnesota will join the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact, a group attempting to expedite the licensing of physicians seeking to provide telemedicine services to patients located in other states. Minnesota joins eight other states in the Compact – Alabama, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, South …

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Texas Telemedicine Rule Delayed by Antitrust Suit

A Texas Medical Board rule requiring a physician to conduct an in-person evaluation before prescribing certain drugs will not go into effect today, June 3, as originally planned. A federal court granted a preliminary injunction to halt enforcement of the rule pending the resolution of an antitrust lawsuit filed by …

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