Telehealth & Digital Health Liability Insurance in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania at a glance

Governing statute

Act 96 of 2022, telemedicine

Pennsylvania's first standalone telehealth law, covering consent and insurance parity.

Interstate Medical Licensure Compact

Member state

Pennsylvania accepts an expedited licensure pathway for physicians already compact-licensed elsewhere.

Primary regulator

Pennsylvania Insurance Department

Confirm current insurance filing requirements with the department.

Coverage parity scope

Applies to in-network telemedicine providers

Act 96's reimbursement floor does not extend the same way to out-of-network billing.

Act 96 definitions and consent requirements

Act 96 of 2022 gave Pennsylvania its first dedicated telemedicine statute, defining telemedicine to include real-time interactive audio-visual communication and requiring providers to obtain a patient's informed consent to receive services through telemedicine before treatment begins. Because the law is relatively new, platforms operating in Pennsylvania should confirm their consent scripts match Act 96's specific language requirements rather than older consent forms drafted during the temporary emergency telehealth allowances that preceded the statute.

Insurance coverage mandate for in-network telemedicine

Act 96 requires insurers to provide coverage for telemedicine services delivered by an in-network provider on terms no less favorable than coverage for the same service delivered in person, which shapes how Pennsylvania telehealth platforms negotiate network participation with commercial payers. A platform relying on out-of-network billing should recognize that Act 96's parity protection applies specifically to in-network care, and should not assume the same reimbursement floor applies to out-of-network claims.

Compact licensing across the Philadelphia-Pittsburgh medical hubs

Pennsylvania's compact membership lets physicians already licensed through another compact state obtain Pennsylvania licensure through an expedited process, which is useful for platforms drawing specialists into the state's two major academic medical hubs in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Even with compact-speed licensing, a platform should verify a treating physician's Pennsylvania license is active before scheduling a patient physically located in the state, since Act 96's consent and standard-of-care obligations attach to the encounter regardless of how quickly licensure was obtained.

Coverage design following Act 96

A Pennsylvania telehealth program should combine medical professional liability, technology E&O, and cyber coverage, with underwriting attention to whether the platform's payer contracts are structured as in-network arrangements subject to Act 96 parity. Because Act 96 is a recent statute and its implementing guidance continues to develop, confirm current consent and billing requirements with counsel before finalizing program terms.

Who we write this for in Pennsylvania

Telehealth liability FAQs for Pennsylvania