ATA ACTION SUBMITS COMPREHENSIVE COMMENTS ON CY2027 MEDICARE PHYSICIAN FEE SCHEDULE, URGES CMS TO PROTECT PATIENT ACCESS TO REMOTE MONITORING

WASHINGTON, DC, AUGUST 31, 2026 – ATA Action, the ATA’s affiliated organization focused on Advocacy Shaping Virtual Care, today submitted comprehensive comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on the Calendar Year (CY) 2027 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) proposed rule, offering detailed recommendations to strengthen program integrity while preserving patient access to remote monitoring and other essential virtual care services.

ATA Action commended CMS for continuing to advance the Trump Administration’s positive agenda on health technology, innovation, and access. Under the leadership of President Trump, Secretary Kennedy at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and Administrator Oz at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the Administration has made significant strides in modernizing Medicare’s approach to virtual care. ATA Action remains committed to serving as a resource and partner to CMS as it works to get these policies right.

“The PFS comment process is one of the most important opportunities the virtual care community has each year to help shape policies that expand access to care for millions of Americans,” said Kyle Zebley, CEO of the ATA and Executive Director of ATA Action. “This Administration has moved decisively and effectively to advance health technology, virtual care, innovation, and access, and we see this rule as a chance to build on that momentum, not step back from it. We submitted these comments in that spirit – as a partner to HHS and CMS, offering practical, workable solutions that protect program integrity without inadvertently limiting the tools patients and providers rely on every day.”

Protecting Access to Remote Monitoring

Chief among ATA Action’s concerns is CMS’s proposal to impose a proposed new direct-employment requirement on clinical staff furnishing remote physiologic monitoring (RPM) and remote therapeutic monitoring (RTM) services, as well as related payment changes. ATA Action warns that, as proposed, these changes could make RPM and RTM financially and operationally unworkable for many physician practices and health systems, particularly smaller practices and rural providers that rely on contracted or shared staffing arrangements to deliver these services.

A Constructive Path on Program Integrity

ATA Action reiterates its strong support for robust program integrity safeguards, while urging CMS to target enforcement at bad actors rather than dismantle clinically integrated care models that are working as intended. In the comment letter, ATA Action offers CMS a constructive alternative built around targeted, evidence-based safeguards – including provider accountability measures, clinical protocols, audits, and improved data collection – as a more effective way to root out fraud and abuse without disrupting legitimate, clinically appropriate staffing arrangements.

Keeping Medicare Aligned with the Broader Health Technology Agenda

ATA Action’s comments also emphasize the need for CMS policy to stay aligned with the substantial bipartisan and Administration-wide momentum behind remote monitoring and health technology. The totally bipartisan RPM Access Act, recently unanimously advanced out of the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means by a 39–0 vote, and the Administration continues to make significant investments in rural health technology. ATA Action urges CMS to ensure the final PFS rule reinforces, rather than inadvertently restricts, access to the same remote monitoring tools that Congress and the Administration are actively working to expand.

Building on What CMS Is Getting Right

ATA Action also recognizes several positive developments in the proposed rule, including new telehealth service additions, CMS’s continued productive engagement on AI-related policy, and the new Software as a Medical Service (SaMS) framework. At the same time, ATA Action urges CMS to ensure that coverage on paper translates into real-world access by establishing meaningful, workable reimbursement pathways for digital mental health treatment (DMHT) devices, the online Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP), and other technology-enabled models of care.

“We appreciate the opportunity to respond to CMS’s AI RFIs and provide in-depth feedback in our comment letter, grounded in our AI Policy Principles and comprehensive AI in Virtual Care Policy Initiative,” said Zebley. “Through this initiative, member workgroups spanning state policy, federal legislative policy, and federal regulatory policy are developing consensus recommendations on the responsible deployment, oversight, valuation, and reimbursement of AI-enabled virtual care. We welcome the opportunity to collaborate with CMS and HHS as these recommendations are finalized, and to work with the Trump Administration on incorporating them into future rulemaking.”

ATA Action’s full comment letter, led by Joe Nye, the ATA’s Vice President, Public Policy and Head of Federal Government Relations at ATA Action, is available here.

About the ATA

As the definitive voice for virtual care, the American Telemedicine Association (ATA) is the catalyst for advancing innovation and the transformation of healthcare through virtual care, digital health, hybrid delivery, and AI-enabled care models. Representing the most diverse ecosystem in healthcare – including leading health systems, academic medical centers, payers, technology innovators, life sciences companies, and clinician leaders – the ATA convenes the field, builds consensus, advances education and practical resources, develops standards and frameworks, and provides policy leadership consistent with its status as a 501(c)(3) organization.

About ATA Action

Founded in 2022 as the ATA’s affiliated 501(c)(6) organization, ATA Action is the leading organization focused on Advocacy Shaping Virtual Care, working with federal and state policymakers to expand and protect how virtual care is legislated and regulated. ATA Action drives industry momentum by influencing legislative and regulatory developments in telehealth, virtual care, remote patient monitoring, artificial intelligence in health, health data privacy, private sector healthcare investment, and more. Representing a diverse membership – including hospital systems, technology companies, professional associations, direct-to-consumer digital health providers, payers, pharmaceutical manufacturers, digital therapeutics developers, and remote monitoring organizations – ATA Action facilitates member-led coalitions focused on initiatives such as Cross State Care, Digital Therapeutics, and Virtual Foodcare.