The declaration allowed access to free testing and free vaccines for those who needed it most but could afford it least. Telehealth medicine was expanded under the public health emergency declaration and was covered by Medicaid expansion, which also meant more connections between doctors and patients vulnerable to a host of medical problems. But that all could soon come to an end.
But the programs that have been used by millions of Americans like expanded telemedicine visits may be gone when the emergency declaration ends.
"The public health emergency declaration that the federal government put implemented in January 2020 was a critical component to the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic," said Dr. Julie Morita with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Telehealth medicine was expanded under the public health emergency declaration and was covered by Medicaid expansion, which also meant more connections between doctors and patients vulnerable to a host of medical problems.