Illinois Eases Telehealth Use by Becoming 10th Member of Interstate Medical Licensure Compact

Governor Bruce Rauner, on July 20, 2015, signed into law the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact Act (the “Act”). In addition to Illinois, the following states are currently members of the Compact: Alabama, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, South Dakota, Utah, and West Virginia.

The Act allows physicians who wish to practice in any of the states participating in the Compact to obtain multiple state licenses without going through the process of submitting a formal application or providing the same materials to each participating state medical board. The driving force behind the Act is the increasing use of telehealth technology by physicians and other health care professionals. Generally physicians and other health care providers are prohibited from delivering health care services through telemedicine/telehealth to patients in states in which they are not licensed to practice. By streamlining the licensing process and decreasing redundancy, the Act aims to remove barriers to the use of telemedicine/telehealth in patient care.

Now that a sufficient number of states have enacted the law, an “Interstate Medical Licensure Compact Commission” is being formed. This commission will collect applicable fees and transmit the physician’s information and licensure fees to the additional states in which the physician seeks to practice. Each individual state will still have the authority to make the licensure decision.

The number of states participating in this arrangement is only expected to grow, as legislation is currently pending in Maryland, Michigan, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas, Wisconsin and Vermont. Each state that signs the Act into law will join the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact Commission.

For more information, please contact your regular Hinshaw attorney.