View Senator Rosen’s Full Remarks Here.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV), a member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and pensions (HELP), questioned health experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the opportunity to utilize telehealth as a means of treatment for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Senator Rosen also expressed support for ensuring that health insurance limitations are not an obstacle to patients seeking telehealth care.
“Many of our constituents are worried about the spread of coronavirus and have questions about their health. Since the symptoms of coronavirus can present like the cold or the flu, I can only imagine that with what people are seeing in the news that they’re going to seek out care,” said Senator Rosen. “In Nevada, we have large rural populations, far away from city centers. An increase in those seeking care and having to travel is not only hard on them, but creates a burden on the system.
“Depending on how easily this virus spreads, how can we use telehealth as a first response to help people in their own homes?” asked Senator Rosen.
Considering that this could be a global pandemic, I wouldn’t want insurance to be a barrier for someone being able to at least access a telehealth hub. How do we address this issue of people feeling like they couldn’t call or use this because of insurance limitations?” asked Senator Rosen in a follow-up.
BACKGROUND: Updates on the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well as the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services can be found on the Senator’s webpage.
In January, Senator Rosen joined Senate colleagues in sending a letter to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar requesting an update on the Administration’s response to the recent coronavirus outbreak.
In December, Senator Rosen announced her co-sponsorship of the CONNECT for Health Act, bipartisan legislation that would expand the use of telehealth and remote patient monitoring services in order to provide cost savings and quality care
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