HB 2042 Summary

• Requires health insurance contracts, health care services organization coverage, and disability insurance policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2018 to cover telemedicine-provided health care services if the same services would be covered when provided in-person.

• Allows insurers to impose the same deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance for telemedicine services as for in-person consultations.

• Defines covered health care services as: trauma, burn, cardiology, infectious diseases, mental health disorders, neurologic diseases including strokes, dermatology, and pulmonology, with urology added effective January 1, 2020, and pain medicine and substance abuse added effective January 1, 2019.

• Defines telemedicine as interactive use of audio, video, or other electronic media for diagnosis, consultation, or treatment, but excludes audio-only telephone, video-only systems, facsimile machines, instant messages, or electronic mail.

• Telemedicine services must comply with Arizona licensure requirements, accreditation standards, and practice guidelines of national medical professional associations to ensure quality of care.