New Bill to Expand Home-Based Virtual Mental, Substance Use Care – mHealth Intelligence
The bill will provide grants to support the delivery of mental health and substance use care via telehealth for rural farming, fishing, and forestry communities.
By Anuja Vaidya
Two United States representatives have introduced a new bill that aims to expand access to at-home virtual mental health and substance use services in rural communities.
Introduced by Andrea Salinas (D-OR) and Diana Harshbarger (R-TN), the Home-Based Tele-mental Health Care Act of 2023 would provide grants to support the delivery of mental health and substance use services in the homes of rural US residents, particularly those working in farming, fishing, and forestry occupations.
“Traditional telemental health models involve care delivered to a patient at an originating clinical site from a specialist working at a distant site,” the bill states. “Having the ability to reach mental health professionals from a place of comfort, such as home, from a personal device may reduce challenges faced in rural areas and amongst Triple-F [farming, fishing, and forestry] workers.”