DEA extends telehealth prescribing flexibility for managed substances via 2026
January 02, 2026
2 min learn
Key takeaways:
- The flexibleness for distant prescribing of managed substances was prolonged via Dec. 31, 2026.
- An skilled underscored to Healio the significance of creating a everlasting framework for the supply.
The American Telemedicine Affiliation introduced that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, or DEA, granted a 1-year extension for distant prescribing of managed drugs simply earlier than the pliability was set to run out on the finish of 2025.
The flexibleness, prolonged via Dec. 31, 2026, permits certified well being care professionals to proceed prescribing sure managed drugs through telehealth, together with audio-only encounters.
It’s the fourth time the pliability has been prolonged.
The extension “is a serious aid for sufferers and well being care suppliers, restoring certainty and avoiding remedy gaps for hundreds of thousands of Individuals,” Alexis Apple, vp of federal affairs on the American Telemedicine Affiliation (ATA), stated in a press launch. “This extension got here inside hours of expiration, putting sufferers, suppliers and well being techniques on the point of pointless disruption.”
Apple stated that letting the pliability lapse for any prolonged interval “would have constituted a predictable and preventable public well being disaster.”
ATA and greater than 450 stakeholder organizations beforehand despatched Congressional leaders a letter encouraging them to behave on a long-term answer for distant prescribing of managed drugs. The flexibleness was first enacted in March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
An HHS press launch stated the extension will give the company and the DEA “extra time to finalize everlasting rules.”
Deepti Pandita, MD, FACP, FAMIA, chief medical data officer at College of California Irvine Well being system and a Healio Major Care Peer Perspective Board member, stated the extension “is a crucial lifeline for sufferers and suppliers, nevertheless it ought to be considered as a bridge — not a vacation spot.”
“I consider our collective focus should now shift towards establishing a everlasting, proactive framework that ensures uninterrupted entry to care,” she instructed Healio.
Transferring ahead, Pandita stated it is going to be necessary to:
- advocate for a everlasting “Particular Registration for Telemedicine” pathway that can empower “accountable prescribing whereas equipping the DEA with instruments to forestall misuse”;
- encourage the DEA and policymakers to work with well being care suppliers when creating future safeguards to make sure regulatory measures are sensible and efficient;
- reinforce that medical choices “ought to stay within the palms of certified medical professionals, supported by clear, patient-centered rules”;
- work to make sure that telehealth waivers are both completely prolonged or prolonged for a number of years to keep away from the uncertainty and disruption that last-minute extensions create; and
- prioritize efforts “to increase telehealth entry for underserved populations, tackle well being disparities and leverage digital care to enhance outcomes and cut back prices.”
For extra data:
Deepti Pandita, MD, FACP, FAMIA, might be reached at primarycare@healio.com.
Sources/Disclosures
Supply:
Press Launch
References:
- HHS & DEA lengthen telemedicine flexibilities for prescribing managed drugs via 2026. https://www.hhs.gov/press-room/dea-telemedicine-extension-2026.html. Revealed Jan. 2, 2026. Accessed Jan. 2, 2026.
- In a serious win for telehealth, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) granted one 12 months extension of distant prescribing flexibilities. Revealed Dec. 31, 2025. Accessed Jan. 2, 2026.
Disclosures:
Healio couldn’t decide related monetary disclosures on the time of publication.
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