Expiration of Medicare Telehealth Flexibilities

Effective October 1, 2025, Medicare’s COVID-era telehealth flexibilities have expired due to the federal government shutdown and Congress’s failure to pass an extension. Many telehealth services for traditional (fee-for-service) Medicare now revert to pre-pandemic rules. (See below.)

What this means for your Medicare patients who rely on telehealth services:

• Follow guidance from your organization’s leadership on how to manage already-scheduled Medicare telehealth visits. Proposed plans will vary by health care system, patient needs and in-person access capacity.
• This change does not apply to behavioral/mental health telehealth, which is permanently authorized under separate provisions.
• Private insurers are not affected unless they change their own policies; confirm payer guidance before altering non-Medicare telehealth visits.

The AANP and other leading health professional associations are actively advocating for Congress to restore telehealth flexibilities. Bipartisan support remains strong, but extension language is tied to the larger spending bill that has not advanced.

In this time of rapidly evolving health policy, we value your trust in MCNP to provide timely, relevant guidance. As your state NP association, we remain committed to being a reliable source of information—so you can focus on delivering the highest quality care to your patients.

We will continue to share updates as they develop. For additional information, you can also visit the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services telehealth policy page at: https://telehealth.hhs.gov/providers/telehealth-policy/telehealth-policy-updates

Please reach out if you have any questions. 

Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners (MCNP)