Fair Telehealth Billing Act of 2026

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 9431 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 9431

To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to prohibit health care providers and facilities from imposing certain facility fees for telehealth.

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IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

June 24, 2026

Mrs. Hayes introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce

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A BILL

To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to prohibit health care providers and facilities from imposing certain facility fees for telehealth.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Fair Telehealth Billing Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITING HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS AND FACILITIES FROM IMPOSING CERTAIN FACILITY FEES FOR TELEHEALTH.

(a) In General.--Subtitle B of title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new part:

``PART 9--BILLING REQUIREMENTS FOR HEALTH CARE FACILITIES AND PROVIDERS

``SEC. 901. LIMITATION ON TELEHEALTH FACILITY FEES.

``A health care provider or facility may not bill a separate facility fee when a health care provider who provided telehealth services is authorized to bill independently for the professional services rendered.''. (b) Enforcement.--Section 502 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1132) is amended-- (1) in subsection (a)(6), by striking ``or (9)'' and inserting ``(9), or (13)''; and (2) in subsection (c), by adding at the end the following new paragraph: ``(13) If a health care provider or facility is found by the Secretary to be in violation of section 901, the Secretary may assess a civil monetary penalty against such provider or facility in an amount not to exceed $10,000 per violation.''. (c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1001 note) is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 804 the following new item:

``Part 9--Billing Requirements for Health Care Facilities and Providers

``901. Limitation on telehealth facility fees.''. (d) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to telehealth services furnished on or after January 1, 2028.

SEC. 3. IMPLEMENTATION.

The Secretary of Labor shall implement the amendments made by this Act by rulemaking. <all>