Telehealth is vital for people with Long COVID. Don’t let it disappear. (The Sick Times)

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An article from The Sick Times explaining why telehealth (remote/virtual healthcare) is needed by patients with Long Covid, ME/CFS, and other chronic illness or disabilities. The article lists some actions that people in the USA and Canada can take to advocate for telehealth.

Telehealth is vital for people with Long COVID. Don’t let it disappear.

When COVID-19 hit in 2020, medicine saw a surge of interest in virtual care delivery and a burst of advancements in telemedicine. As millions of people went online for care, both telehealth’s benefits and its challenges became increasingly apparent, and the platforms became more user-friendly over time.

But those options are now dwindling alongside pandemic urgency. In the U.S., Medicare is set to stop covering telehealth services in early 2026.

In British Columbia, Canada, where we live, legislators are considering capping the number of people who telehealth providers can assist during one appointment, limiting group visits that serve people with chronic diseases more efficiently. These changes are more than an inconvenience. For many of us, critical infrastructure is in jeopardy, and we urgently need government policy to protect it.

Steps you can take:

A more accessible system is possible. Here are some options to advocate for that system.

• Sign petitions like this one: “Join the Fight for Access to Telemedicine Services, Regardless of Location"
  
  
• Send your elected officials a letter about the importance of telehealth for ensuring equitable healthcare, why it matters to you, and why they should pass your concerns on to higher levels of government.
  
  • People in the U.S. can reference this Chronic Care Alliance letter and Action Network page .
  • While more specific templates for Canadians are lacking, guidelines on how to write your members of parliament (MPs), like this one from the Canadian Arthritis Patient Alliance, can offer a good place to start. DoNoHarm BC also has a phone script template.

Together, our efforts can help us keep telehealth accessible to the broader community.