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Substitute Senate Bill No. 70

Public Act No. 16-25

AN ACT CONCERNING TELEHEALTH PROVIDERS.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subdivision (11) of subsection (a) of section 19a-906 of the 2016 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2016):

(11) "Telehealth provider" means any physician licensed under chapter 370, physical therapist licensed under chapter 376, chiropractor licensed under chapter 372, naturopath licensed under chapter 373, podiatrist licensed under chapter 375, occupational therapist licensed under chapter 376a, optometrist licensed under chapter 380, advanced practice registered nurse licensed under chapter 378, physician assistant licensed under chapter 370, psychologist licensed under chapter 383, marital and family therapist licensed under chapter 383a, clinical social worker or master social worker licensed under chapter 383b, alcohol and drug counselor licensed under chapter 376b, professional counselor licensed under chapter 383c, [or] dietitian-nutritionist certified under chapter 384b, speech and language pathologist licensed under chapter 399, respiratory care practitioner licensed under chapter 381a or audiologist licensed under chapter 397a, who is providing health care or other health services through the use of telehealth within such person's scope of practice and in accordance with the standard of care applicable to the profession.

Sec. 2. Subsection (f) of section 19a-906 of the 2016 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2016):

(f) Nothing in this section shall prohibit: (1) A health care provider from providing on-call coverage pursuant to an agreement with another health care provider or such health care provider's professional entity or employer; (2) a health care provider from consulting with another health care provider concerning a patient's care; or (3) orders of health care providers for hospital outpatients or inpatients. For purposes of this subsection, "health care provider" means a person or entity licensed or certified pursuant to chapter 370, 372, 373, 375, 376 to 376b, inclusive, 378, [or] 379, 380, 381a, 383 to 383c, inclusive, 384b, 397a or 399 or licensed or certified pursuant to chapter 368d or 384d.

Approved May 26, 2016