Alaska
Physicians:
Alaska permits prescribing based on a telemedicine encounter (typically a secure two-way videoconference or use of “store-and-forward” technology). Prescribing solely on the basis of an online questionnaire or email without a prior physician-patient relationship does not constitute acceptable standard of care and is prohibited. It is also unprofessional conduct to prescribe based solely on a patient-supplied history that a physician licensed in this state received by telephone, facsimile, or electronic format.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Alabama
Physicians:
Alabama permits prescribing based on a telemedicine encounter. There is no specific definition associated with “telemedicine” in statutes, regulations, or guidance. Accordingly, physicians are held to the same standard of care regardless of treatment modality.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Arkansas
Physicians:
A proper patient-provider relationship, which is required in order to prescribe, may be established via telemedicine using real-time audio and visual telemedicine technology. Prescriptions based solely in response to an internet questionnaire, an internet consultation, or a telephone are prohibited.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Arizona
Physicians:
Arizona permits prescribing based on a telehealth encounter, including audio-only encounters. Based on 2006 guidance, prescribing on the basis of a questionnaire is not permitted.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

California
Physicians:
California permits prescribing on the basis of a telemedicine encounter, including based on a self-screening tool or questionnaire, as long as the licensee complies with the appropriate standard of care.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Colorado
Physicians:
Colorado permits prescribing based on a telehealth encounter, held to the same standard of practice as in-person care. Prescribing on the basis of a questionnaire is not acceptable standard of care.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Wyoming
Physicians:
Wyoming has a very broad definition of telemedicine, and it does not otherwise regulate remote prescribing of non-controlled substances.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

West Virginia
Physicians:
A physician-patient relationship may be established via a real-time audio-visual encounter, interactive audio-using store and forward technology, or audio-only conversations in real time. A physician-patient relationship may not be established through text-based communications such as e-mail, Internet questionnaires, text-based messaging or other written forms of communication.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Wisconsin
Physicians:
Telemedicine is broadly defined to include services delivered via “electronic communications.” Before delivering treatment, the physician must conduct a patient evaluation. Issuing prescriptions based solely on a static questionnaire is not sufficient.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Washington
Physicians:
There are no statutes or regulations that govern professional standards for telemedicine services provided by physicians. guidance documents define “telemedicine” broadly and permit physicians to establish a practitioner-patient relationship via telemedicine. Patient completion of a questionnaire is insufficient to establish a practitioner-patient relationship.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Vermont
Physicians:
Physician may prescribe after conducting an examination via telemedicine (defined to require a live audiovisual encounter) or with “the use of instrumentation and diagnostic equipment through which images and medical records may be transmitted electronically.” An electronic, online, or telephonic evaluation is inadequate for the patient’s initial evaluation.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Virginia
Physicians:
Physicians may prescribe after conducting an examination with “the use of instrumentation and diagnostic equipment through which images and medical records may be transmitted electronically.” For the purpose of Schedule VI controlled substances, either “face-to-face interactive, two-way, real-time communications services” or store-and-forward technologies are acceptable to establish a bona-fide practitioner-patient relationship if, among other things, “the patient has provided a medical history that is available for review by the prescriber [and] (b) the prescriber obtains an updated medical history at the time of prescribing.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Utah
Physicians:
Providers can establish a proper provider-patient relationship via telehealth, which is defined to include both synchronous interactions and asynchronous store-and-forward technology. Prescribing solely on the basis of an online questionnaire or patient-generated medical history is prohibited.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Texas
Physicians:
A valid provider-patient relationship may be established via an audio-visual encounter or asynchronous store and forward technology, provided that the provider has access to (i) clinically relevant photographic or video images, including diagnostic images; or (ii) the patient’s relevant medical records, such as the relevant medical history. Telephone consults are permitted if used in conjunction with asynchronous store-and-forward technology, and the provider uses clinical information from images or medical records.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Tennessee
Physicians:
A physician-patient relationship may be established via a telemedicine encounter whereby health information is transmitted via store and forward technology or video conferencing. It is impermissible to prescribe based “solely on answers to a set of questions” and prescriptions generally must be based on a “physical examination.”

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

South Dakota
Physicians:
The definition of telehealth includes interactive audio-video, interactive audio with store and forward, and remote patient monitoring. Any health care professional who utilizes telehealth shall ensure that a proper health provider-patient relationship is established prior to prescribing.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

South Carolina
Physicians:
Telemedicine is broadly defined to incorporate the practice of medicine via “electronic communications.” An appropriate evaluation must be conducted before diagnosing and treating patients, which must meet the standard of care. A simple questionnaire without an appropriate evaluation is insufficient.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Rhode Island
Physicians:
Prescribing solely on the basis of an online questionnaire is considered unprofessional conduct. A “physical evaluation” is required, though this can be completed via telemedicine, which is defined as either two-way, audio-visual encounter or store-and-forward technology. Prescriptions cannot be issued solely on the basis of a questionnaire.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Pennsylvania
Physicians:
There are no applicable laws, regulations, or guidance that govern telehealth or remote prescribing by physicians.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Oregon
Physicians:
The Oregon Medical Board has issued guidance indicating that telemedicine “generally” includes “secure video conferencing.”

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Oklahoma
Physicians:
Telemedicine encounters must provide equivalent information to what would have been provided in an in-person exam. Beginning in November, the definition of telemedicine will explicitly include synchronous and asynchronous mechanisms.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Ohio
Physicians:
Physicians are permitted to prescribe without a “physical examination” as long as they satisfy certain, enumerated requirements and “use appropriate technology” to conduct all requirements as if the evaluation were in person. The Medical Board has said the rule is “silent” on whether a visual connection is required.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

New York
Physicians:
Telehealth is limited to telemedicine, store and forward technology, remote patient monitoring and audio-only telephone communication. Telemedicine is defined to require an audiovisual interaction.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Nevada
Physicians:
The term telehealth is defined to incorporate “information and audio-visual communication technology.”

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

New Jersey
Physicians:
Telemedicine services shall be provided using interactive, real-time, two-way communication technologies, but audio-only telemedicine combined with asynchronous store-and-forward is permissible if the provider accesses and reviews the patient’s medical records and concludes that the provider can “meet the same standard of care” as if the services were provided in person.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

New Hampshire
Physicians:
Telehealth and telemedicine include the use of audio, video, or other electronic media. Providers must establish a provider-patient relationship via an audiovisual encounter in order to prescribe.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Nebraska
Physicians:
The definition for “telehealth” incorporates both synchronous and asynchronous modalities.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

North Dakota
Physicians:
Licensees can prescribe on the basis of a telemedicine encounter, which is defined to include interactive patient encounters, as well as asynchronous store-and-forward technologies. An examination based solely on a static questionnaire or audio conversation is insufficient to meet the standard of care for treatment via telemedicine.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

North Carolina
Physicians:
The Board prohibits prescribing on the basis of answers to a questionnaire. It also states that a “physical examination” is “ordinarily” required, though it leaves open the possibility that prescriptions may be issued pursuant to a telemedicine encounter (which is broadly defined).

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Montana
Physicians:
The definition of “telemedicine” is broadly defined and incorporates videoconferencing, audio-only conversations, and “store-and-forward,” which is broadly defined to include electronic information that is reviewed by a health care provider at a later date. The definition of “telemedicine” excludes emails, instant messaging conversations, and fax.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Mississippi
Physicians:
Physicians must perform an examination prior to providing treatment, which does not need to be in-person if the technology provides the same information “as if the exam had been performed face-to-face.” In addition, a valid physician patient relationship requires a “physical examination.” Prescribing based solely on the answers to a set of questions is unprofessional conduct.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Missouri
Physicians:
Prior to prescribing a drug via telemedicine, a physician must establish a valid physician patient relationship, which includes a “physical examination” (undefined). In addition, prescribing solely on the basis of an internet questionnaire is prohibited.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Minnesota
Physicians:
The term “telemedicine” is broadly defined, and includes interactive, audio-visual encounters and the use of store-and-forward technology. Store-and-forward technology is not specifically defined.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Maine
Physicians:
A 2021 statute defines telehealth to include both synchronous and asynchronous encounters. Current regulations applicable to physicians specify that a static questionnaire is insufficient to form the basis of a prescription. It distinguishes this with an “adaptive, interactive, and responsive online interview,” suggesting that the former is permissible. It is unclear whether telehealth regulations applicable to physicians will be revised in light of the new telehealth statute.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

New Mexico
Physicians:
Physicians may only prescribe via a telehealth encounter that incorporates face-to-face, videoconferencing technology. In addition, prescribing based solely on an online questionnaire is expressly identified as insufficient.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Maryland
Physicians:
A 2020 law permits prescriptions to be issued on the basis of synchronous (defined solely as “real time”) or asynchronous encounters. The Board of Medicine has historically had regulations that are more strict than the provisions in the new statute (including requiring an audio-visual encounter), although these are arguably superseded by the new law.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Massachusetts
Physicians:
Telehealth is defined to include the use of synchronous and asynchronous modalities, as well as audio-only telephone and online adaptive interviews. Based on recent guidance from the Board of Registration in Medicine, a face-to-face encounter is not required.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Louisiana
Physicians:
Telemedicine is defined to include electronic communications, information technology, asynchronous store-and-forward transfer technology, or technology that facilitates synchronous interaction between a physician at a distant site and a patient at an originating site, or audio-only under certain circumstances. Email and text messages that are not HIPAA-compliant do not constitute “telemedicine.” In addition, based on current regulations, an online, electronic or written mail message does not satisfy the standards of appropriate care.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Kentucky
Physicians:
Telehealth is defined to include “interactive audio, video, or other electronic media.” An electronic, online, or telephonic questionnaire is considered insufficient for the initial evaluation of a patient or any follow-up evaluation.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Kansas
Physicians:
The term “telemedicine” is defined to require interactive modalities. In addition, Kansas pharmacy laws prohibit prescriptions based on an online questionnaire.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Indiana
Physicians:
Providers can prescribe on the basis of a telehealth encounter, which is defined to include both videoconferencing and store and forward technologies. Certain technologies are explicitly excluded from the definition of “telemedicine,” including emails, instant messaging, fax, questionnaires, and internet consultations. Accordingly, these technologies may not be relied upon as the sole basis to issue prescriptions.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Illinois
Physicians:
Health care professionals are broadly permitted to use telehealth to perform services, which includes telemedicine. Telemedicine, in turn, is defined broadly in the Medical Practice Act to include “telephonic” and “electronic” means.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Idaho
Physicians:
A provider-patient relationship must be established using two-way, audio-visual technology. Moreover, treatment based solely on an online questionnaire does not constitute an acceptable standard of care.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Iowa
Physicians:
Physicians may establish a provider-patient relationship and prescribe via telemedicine, which is defined to include audio-visual communications and asynchronous store-and-forward technologies. A static questionnaire is insufficient to form the basis of a prescription, in contrast to an “adaptive, interactive, and responsive online interview,” suggesting that the former is permissible.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Hawaii
Physicians:
Based on language in the commercial coverage statute, a provider-patient relationship may be established via telehealth. In addition, prescribing on the basis of a telehealth encounter is permissible provided that the standard of care is met. Prescribing solely on the basis of an online questionnaire is prohibited without a prior physician-patient relationship.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Georgia
Physicians:
Georgia permits prescribing through electronic means. Such treatment is permissible if the physician has previously personally seen and examined the patient, is providing medical care on behalf of another provider that has personally seen the patient, or is able to examine the patient using technology or peripherals that are equal or superior to personal examination within the provider’s standard of care.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Michigan
Physicians:
Physicians are permitted to prescribe via telehealth, which is defined broadly. It includes telemedicine, which is defined to include interactive audio or video, as well as online messaging.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Florida
Physicians:
Florida permits prescribing based on a telehealth encounter, which includes synchronous and asynchronous communications. Audio-only calls, email messages, and fax transmissions are excluded from the definition of telehealth.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Delaware
Physicians:
Providers may establish a provider-patient relationship via telemedicine. Diagnoses must be based on an encounter using audio and visual communication. Prescribing solely on the basis of an online questionnaire, Internet consult, or telephone consult is prohibited without a prior physician-patient relationship.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

District of Columbia
Physicians:
Physicians are required to use real-time telemedicine to establish a provider-patient relationship if they have not conducted a prior in-person examination with the patient. Real-time is defined to require “near immediate feedback.”

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.

Connecticut
Physicians:
Connecticut permits prescribing based on a real time, two-way interactive communications or store-and-forward technologies. Fax, audio-only phone, texting, and email are excluded from the definition of “telehealth.” Telehealth providers must also have access to the patient’s medical history and medical record.

For our full Rules Governing Telehealth Modalities and Patient-Provider Relationships Report click below to download.