Bill > HB2577

This bill establishes a statewide pilot program for telehealth services in schools, administered by the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) for the 2025-2026 school year. The program aims to increase student access to healthcare services by contracting with a third-party telehealth provider that meets specific criteria, such as serving at least 50,000 students, providing culturally competent pediatric care, and offering both physical and behavioral health services. Participating school districts must make telehealth services available to all students and cooperate with program evaluation. The telehealth provider must offer services at no cost to uninsured students and waive or reimburse cost-sharing for all students. The OHA will select the provider and participating school districts through a competitive proposal process and will evaluate the program's effectiveness, preparing a report for legislative committees by September 15, 2026. The bill includes a $2 million General Fund appropriation, declares an emergency to ensure implementation by July 1, 2025, and includes a sunset provision that repeals the program on January 2, 2027, effectively making this a time-limited pilot initiative to assess the potential benefits of school-based telehealth services.