Originally the COVID-19 allowances to prescribe controlled medications via telehealth were set to expire on May 11, 2023, however, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services have worked together to extend the exceptions to the regulations surrounding prescribing controlled medications. The extension will go until November 11, 2023, and will allow practitioners to prescribe schedule II-V controlled medications through audio-video telemedicine visits. This includes prescribing schedule III-V narcotic-controlled medications for maintenance and withdrawal management of opioid use disorder through audio-only telemedicine encounters. The prescribing of the controlled medications through telemedicine will not require an in-person medical evaluation, provided all other regulations, state and federal laws are followed.
If a practitioner-patient, telehealth relationship is established on or before November 11, 2023, the exceptions and flexibilities surrounding controlled medication telehealth prescribing that have been in place since the COVID-19 pandemic will be extended for another year and will be permitted until November 11, 2024.
(Temporary Extension of COVID-19 Telemedicine Flexibilities for Prescription of Controlled Medications; DEA and HHS, 2023, 88 Fed. Reg. 30037 (May 10, 2023))
Telehealth Package
We offer a Telehealth Legal package for Minnesota providers! To learn more about it, click the link below.