[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 136 (Monday, October 24, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11769-S11770]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BURNS:
  S. 1909. A bill to improve the provision of telehealth services under 
the Medicare Program, to provide grants for the development of 
telehealth networks, and for other purposes; to the Committee on 
Finance.
  Mr. BURNS. Mr. President, I rise today to talk about the introduction 
of my bill, the Medicare Telehealth Enhancement Act of 2005.
  Now, not all of us live in the big city--like New York City or 
Chicago--but that should not mean that all of us cannot receive the 
same quality health care. Since I have been in office, I have spent a 
lot of time making sure that folks who live out in the hinterland--like 
the small towns of Scobey or Jordan or Wolf Point across Montana--still 
get quality health care, like everyone else. I do not want distance to 
be a barrier to care.
  One of the ways we have bridged these divides is through telehealth--
actually using technology to draw people together and deliver care. 
Now, across the great State of Montana, we have doctors consulting with 
patients who may be 200 or 300 miles away. That means those folks who 
live in the middle of nowhere do not have to drive 400 miles roundtrip, 
just to get a medical opinion on symptoms they may have or minor 
changes which may need to be made to their diabetes equipment, or 
feedback from an x-ray at a local clinic, from a specialist. That is a 
big deal, especially when roads are icy and the temperature is below 
zero.
  I have sponsored the Medicare Telehealth Enhancement Act of 2005, 
which is a bill to improve the provisions of telehealth services under 
the Medicare Program and provide grants for the development of 
telehealth networks.
  Specifically, my bill will: facilitate the provision of telehealth 
services across State lines, Licensure, as it affects providers who 
consult diagnose across State lines, remains a significant barrier to 
accessing such services, and call for Medicare reimbursement for remote 
medical and health services for all remaining institutions eligible to 
participate in Medicare but not currently eligible to be reimbursed for 
telemedicine/telehealth services.
  Include an expansion of Medicare-covered originating telehealth 
sites, prioritizing eligibility for nursing homes, dialysis centers, 
and community-based mental health centers.
  Revise ``originating site'' language to ensure telehealth service 
providers are reimbursement-eligible when patients are located at sites 
with telehealth capabilities, regardless of originating site 
designation.
  Expand Medicare reimbursement for telehealth services to all 
geographical areas, recognizing eligibility for telehealth sites among 
urban populations as well as rural and underserved populations.
  Allow for ``eligible practitioners'' furnishing telehealth services 
to include physical and occupational therapists, speech-language 
pathologists, and other certified providers, as well as those the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services approves.
  Amend Medicare coverage to all remaining medical services currently 
covered under the CPT procedure codes but not eligible to be reimbursed 
when provided via telemedicine/telehealth, and medical services that 
are provided using store-and-forward technology.
  Authorize a grant program through the Office for the Advancement of 
Telehealth of HRSA for the development of telehealth networks and 
defines nonprofit and for-profit alliances as grant-eligible provided 
the grant recipient is a nonprofit.
  Reauthorize the Telehealth Network and Telehealth Resource Centers 
grant programs through 2012.
  Shortages of health care workers across the spectrum are nothing new.

[[Page S11770]]

We have all witnessed this disturbing trend of shortages in nursing, 
radiology, mental health professions, and many other health 
professionals for quite some time. While the ultimate solution to this 
problem lies in a variety of actions, telehealth has proven a solution 
to this mounting crisis. I have long supported efforts in technology to 
improve the efficiency and quality of health care, and make it easier 
for folks in rural areas to get the health services they need. 
Telehealth is one answer to the access and affordability problems 
facing health care today, and I hope my bill will increase the ease 
with which folks obtain their critical health services.
  Telehealth applications have a record of cutting costs, increasing 
choice and reducing medical errors in facilities and communities across 
the country. Telehealth also provides services to elderly who may not 
otherwise be able to get to a health care facility for care. This is 
growing increasingly important in rural America--especially in my State 
of Montana. Montana's demographics have been changing over the past few 
years, and our health care providers continue to see more and more 
patients over the age of 65. We now have more elderly people per capita 
than most States in the union, and by 2025, Montana is predicted to 
rank third in the Nation in the number of people over the age of 65.
  We must charge forward to modernize and improve healthcare through 
the application of information technology. Healthcare expenditures in 
2003 totaled $1.7 trillion--a number that is growing faster than the 
overall economy. Increased adoption of health information technology 
has the potential to save this country billions of dollars and 
thousands of lives. I want to do what I can to bring more money to the 
State of Montana for telehealth services and expand the availability of 
these services to more patients in more areas than ever before. I will 
continue my efforts, both through bringing money to Montana to make 
this happen and by passing meaningful, common-sense legislation to get 
rid of the over-burdensome red-tape that often gets in the way of good 
care.
  I think it is essential to bring quality health care to all comers of 
Montana and other rural States. It is high time we bring back the 
dynamic days of these frontier areas by creating and maintaining 
vibrant and thriving communities, which have so much to offer their 
residents, including one of the most important basic needs--health 
care.

                          ____________________