Presentation at PBI Health Law Institute on Telehealth, AI, and Physician Contracting: A Recap | Tucker Arensberg, P.C.
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/presentation-at-pbi-health-law-8145710/
Publish Date: 2026-03-23 15:02:00
Source Domain: www.jdsupra.com
I recently had the opportunity to speak at the Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s Health Law Institute in Philadelphia on the topic of “Navigating New Frontiers in Physician Practice: Telehealth, Artificial Intelligence, and Contracting.”
Healthcare law is entering a period of rapid change. Telehealth, artificial intelligence, and remote care models are reshaping how physicians deliver care, while legislatures, regulators, and courts are working to adapt older legal frameworks to new technologies. Although the tools are changing quickly, the core legal issues remain familiar: licensure, standard of care, supervision, privacy, and contractual risk.
Below is a recap of the key issues I discussed.
1. Telehealth Is No Longer a Temporary Workaround
Pennsylvania’s Telemedicine Act (Act 42 of 2024) helped move telehealth from a pandemic-era necessity into a more permanent statutory framework. For policies filed on or after March 31, 2025, insurers, Medicaid, and CHIP must cover medically necessary services delivered through telemedicine when those same services would be covered in person.
But the most important legal point is this: the standard of care in a telehealth encounter is the same as it is in person. Telehealth does not reduce a physician’s duty of care. If the technology does not allow for a clinically meaningful evaluation, the physician may need to direct the patient to an in-person visit.
2. Patient Location Still Matters for Licensure
One of the most common telehealth traps is licensure. In most cases, a physician is considered to be practicing medicine where the patient is physically located at the time of the encounter, not where the physician is sitting.
Pennsylvania’s full implementation of the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact (IMLC) in 2025 made multi-state licensure easier, but it did not create a national license. Physicians still need to ensure they are properly licensed in the state where the patient is located. That makes…
