In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi on February 20, LeadingAge, along with over 150 other stakeholder groups, emphasize the importance of access to telemedicine and urge the Department of Justice to rescind the proposed the Drug Enforcement Agency’s telemedicine regulation and to work with Congress to ensure ongoing access to virtual prescribing for patients and providers of certain controlled substances.

The letter emphasizes that time is of the essence as the current COVID-19 era flexibilities expire this December.

LeadingAge has advocated on behalf of members to allow more flexibility for prescribers to use telehealth for controlled substances across aging services.

As part of a serious of Executive Orders on January 20, the Trump administration put a freeze on any new regulations for 90 days and required all agencies to review current regulations out for public comment and determine if they should be rescinded.

This review of regulations is set to end on March 20, with comments on the Biden Administration’s proposed rule due March 18.