Another bipartisan piece of legislation has been introduced in Congress that, if passed, would mean huge advancements for telehealth nationwide.

The bill, sponsored by Reps. Mike Thompson, D-Calif.; Gregg Harper, R-Miss.; Diane Black, R-Tenn. and Peter Welch, D-Vt., would add physical therapists, speech language pathologists, audiologists and others to the list of providers eligible to administer telehealth services.

The bill, backed by a handful of industry stakeholders, would also include the patient's home as an allowable care site for specific hospice and home health services.

[See also: 'Next Generation' ACO model puts focus on telehealth.] [See also: Telehealth gets big boost from AMA.]

"Both patients and providers want telehealth for two simple reasons – it saves money and saves lives," Thompson said in a press release. "Telehealth allows physicians to provide more patients with better healthcare, but while we've witnessed much advancement in the field of telemedicine, our policies still lag behind."

This story was originally published by Healthcare IT News' sister publication, mHealth News. See the entire story here.