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HB 5615

Relating to Teleheatlh

2026 Regular Session Introduced by Larry Kump

HB 5615 removes pre-telemedicine in-person visits, enables interstate telehealth registrations, and sets standards for care, documentation, and prescribing.

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Bill Summary · HB 5615

Summary of HB 5615 (2026) – West Virginia

Jurisdiction: West Virginia | Committee: Health and Human Resources | Sponsor: Delegate Kump

HB 5615 aims to modify telehealth regulations in West Virginia by removing in-person visit requirements before initiating telemedicine services and clarifying documentation and confidentiality responsibilities. The bill covers both the general telehealth framework and specific medical practice provisions.

1) Main purpose and intent

  • Remove mandatory in-person examinations prior to the initial telemedicine encounter.
  • Establish interstate telehealth registration and related standards to govern telehealth practice across state lines.
  • Align telemedicine practice with standards of care and confidentiality, while detailing licensure, registration, and recordkeeping expectations.

2) Key provisions and changes

A. Telehealth practice (General provisions) – §30-1-26

  • Definitions:
    • Telehealth services include synchronous or asynchronous telecommunication, including audio, video, and data transfer, but exclude internet questionnaires, emails, and faxes.
    • “Interstate telehealth services” involve providing telehealth to a West Virginia patient from a practitioner located in another state.
    • “Registration” authorizes an out-of-state practitioner to provide interstate telehealth within West Virginia’s scope of practice.
    • Several terms define who is a “health care practitioner,” what constitutes telehealth, and related concepts (e.g., “established patient,” “store and forward telemedicine,” etc.).
  • Emergency rulemaking pathway:
    • Boards must propose emergency rules to regulate telehealth practice, with legislative rulemaking processes.
  • Key standards for interstate telehealth:
    • The telehealth encounter occurs where the patient is located.
    • Practitioners must be licensed in good standing in applicable states and registered in WV for interstate telehealth.
    • Define when the physician-patient relationship is established and establish the standard of care.
    • A patient with an established relationship must have an in-person visit within 12 months after the initial telemedicine encounter (with case-by-case exceptions for specific services: acute inpatient care, post-operative follow-up, behavioral health, addiction medicine, palliative care).
    • Prohibitions on prescribing Schedule II controlled substances unless allowed within exceptions; applies similarly to group practice with an established patient.
    • Establish conduct, fees for interstate telehealth practitioners, and disciplinary references.
    • Prohibit prescribing or dispensing abortifacients and gender-altering medications to minors.
  • Licensure and practice location:
    • Registration to practice interstate telehealth does not authorize practicing from within WV without full licensure.
    • Practitioners registered in WV are subject to WV laws and board processes, and must notify WV boards of license restrictions in other jurisdictions.
  • Existing license holders:
    • Physicians licensed in WV are not subject to registration but must follow telehealth rules.

B. Telemedicine practice; WV Medical Practice Act – §30-3-13a

  • Definitions:
    • Clarifies terms for telemedicine/telemedicine technologies, including store-and-forward, chronic nonmalignant pain, and telemedicine practices.
  • Licensure/registration:
    • Telemedicine practice occurs where the patient is located.
    • Practitioners must be licensed or registered; exemptions for informal consultations, emergencies, or disasters with limits.
  • Establishing physician-patient relationships:
    • Prohibits establishing relationships via text-based or non-interactive communications.
    • Allows establishment via secure interactive audio-visual telemedicine, or store-and-forward for pathology/radiology, or real-time audio for certain cases.
  • Telemedicine practice standards:
    • Requires identity verification, physician qualifications disclosure, contact information, and a documented physician-patient relationship adhering to standard of care.
    • Requires appropriate informed consent for telemedicine and comprehensive clinical evaluations.
    • Requires patient health records aligned with traditional standards and accessible to patient and authorized care providers.
  • Prescribing limitations:
    • Generally restricts prescribing Schedule II substances when the encounter is solely telemedicine, with specific exemptions (established patients within group practice, certain pediatric/special-needs cases, hospital dispensing in specific settings, etc.).
    • Prohibits prescribing pain medications for chronic nonmalignant pain based solely on a telemedicine encounter, with established-patient exemptions.
    • Prohibits abortion-inducing prescriptions.
  • Exceptions and rulemaking:
    • Audio-only or text-based communications are allowed in certain scenarios (e.g., established relationships via in-person encounters, cross-coverage, emergencies).
    • Joint rules may be proposed by WV Board of Medicine and WV Board of Osteopathic Medicine to implement telemedicine standards.

3) Who/what is affected

  • Out-of-state health care practitioners seeking to provide telehealth to WV patients (via interstate registration).
  • West Virginia patients and their care providers, who would interact with telemedicine services under the described standards.
  • WV medical and osteopathic boards, which would establish and enforce telemedicine rules and disciplinary processes.
  • Hospitals and group practices, especially regarding prescribing restrictions and established-patient exceptions.

4) Procedural and timeline aspects

  • The bill outlines an emergency rulemaking process for telehealth regulation by the relevant boards, with rules subject to legislative approval.
  • It specifies a 12-month in-person follow-up requirement after the initial telemedicine encounter (with listed exceptions), impacting ongoing telemedicine care planning.
  • The bill proposes prohibitions and exceptions for prescribing controlled substances and abortifacients, subject to ongoing regulatory rules.

Overall, HB 5615 seeks to modernize telehealth by removing pre-telemedicine in-person requirements, establishing interstate practice rules, and codifying documentation, confidentiality, and prescribing standards aligned with telemedicine care in West Virginia.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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