DEA Rules for Telehealth Providers Have Been Extended — Here’s What You Need To Know

Getting to the doctor can be a hassle — even under the best of circumstances.

For the most vulnerable patients, the challenge can become impossible. Taking a midday break from work to drive across town to your physician’s office might be inconvenient, but for those with physical disabilities, it may be out of the question. For patients experiencing immunodeficiency, every doctor’s office visit can feel like a game of Russian roulette.

That’s one reason that, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) created temporary rules that allowed for patients to receive prescriptions for controlled substances — when medically indicated — via telehealth. These ran counter to the 2008 Ryan Haight Act, which required medical care providers to perform at least one in-person medical evaluation before prescribing such medications online.

With the pandemic peaking, they allowed patients who otherwise wouldn’t be able to access treatment get the care they needed.

Telehealth prescribing rules called into question under Trump administration

Though the rules were always meant to be a temporary measure that would expire after the COVID-19 public health emergency order, after hearing input from health care providers, experts and patients, the DEA extended these rules — first in May, and then in October, of 2023.

In its final days, the Biden administration moved to make two of the rules — "Expansion of Buprenorphine Treatment via Telemedicine Encounter" and "Continuity of Care via Telemedicine for Veterans Affairs Patients," a rule loosening restrictions for Veterans Affairs (VA) practitioners who work exclusively via telehealth — permanent.

But on his first day in office, President Trump signed an executive order halting federal rulemaking, which put the movement to make the rules official on pause.

As of March 20, 2025, a third extension ensures this flexibility in telehealth prescribing will continue until December 31, 2025 — though the future beyond that remains unclear.

What to know about getting prescriptions via telehealth — for now

Time will tell whether doctors’ ability to prescribe controlled substances via telehealth will become permanent law. Until the end of the year, though, eligible patients can still benefit from the extended telehealth provisions — specifically the availability of buprenorphine treatment through telemedicine without the requirement of an in-person visit and, for VA patients, continuity of care.

Buprenorphine is a synthetic opioid that was first synthesized in the 1960s which can be used to treat pain as well as opioid use disorders. The DEA’s rule allows providers to prescribe up to six months’ supply of the drug to patients they’ve never seen in person, and is written so as to include future medications for opioid use disorders that are approved by the FDA. The rule allows more than 68,000 patients to access what can be potentially life-saving medication.

The VA rule allows providers employed or contracted by the VA to prescribe controlled substances to VA patients via telehealth — so long as they have been evaluated in person by a VA practitioner at some point in the past.

The DEA also proposed a new rule that would create the foundation for a "special registration" framework for clinicians prescribing controlled substances telemedically, along with new guidelines and requirements to help define this new way of treatment.

To learn whether your doctor offers telehealth visits, reach out to your health care provider’s office directly. You may also wish to review your health insurance policy to learn more about how telehealth visits are covered; in some cases, telemedicine may be subject to different copays or coinsurance than you’d be responsible for in person.

Most health insurance plans also include prescription drug coverage, which can help you afford your medications — including any prescribed controlled substances. However, if you take many medications (or a few expensive ones), there are additional ways to save on prescription medicine.