The project that regulates telehealth in the country, a mode of remote provision of services in the area, was approved by the Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday night (13).
Telehealth encompasses, in addition to telemedicine, remote care in nursing, physiotherapy and psychology, for example.
The project, by Deputy Adriana Ventura (Novo-SP), was changed by senators. The Senate substitute was rejected by 296 votes to 95. Now, the text goes to presidential approval.
The rapporteur in the House, deputy Pedro Vilela (PSDB-AL), accepted only one of the senators’ changes, which deals with the Statute of Persons with Disabilities.
The device includes in the competence of the SUS the improvement of neonatal care, offering actions and services to prevent brain damage and neurological sequelae in newborns, including through telehealth.
The text establishes principles for the practice, such as the autonomy of the health professional, the patient’s consent and the right to refuse this remote care. According to the project, acts of the professional who used telehealth would have national coverage.
The federal councils will be responsible for the ethical regulation of the provision of remote services. In addition, a rule that intends to restrict telemedicine must demonstrate the indispensability of the measure so that damage to the health of patients is avoided.
In 2019, the CFM (Conselho Federal de Medicina) issued a resolution to regulate distance care, but the text ended up being revoked. Until the 2020 law, the practice was regulated only by infralegal rules, which, according to the rapporteur, generated legal uncertainty.
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