Joint Commission intros new Telehealth Accreditation Program

The Joint Commission has introduced a new Telehealth Accreditation Program targeted at hospitals, ambulatory, and behavioral healthcare organizations that exclusively deliver care through telehealth. This program, effective from July 1, aims to provide updated and streamlined standards to ensure safer and higher-quality virtual care.

Key aspects of the program include:

Scope: Designed for organizations offering care solely through telehealth.

Requirements: Similar to other Joint Commission accreditations, with specific standards tailored for telehealth services, such as information management, patient identification, medication management, and credentialing.

Emergency Management: Streamlined requirements addressing remote care provision during emergencies.

Education Standards: New standards for provider and patient education on telehealth platform use.

Equipment and Connectivity: Standards focusing on virtual care equipment, devices, and connectivity.

Organizations with existing agreements to provide telehealth services can apply for this accreditation, which will replace previous telehealth and technology accreditations in the Joint Commission's Ambulatory Health Care and Behavioral Health Care and Human Services programs .