SB2153 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB104 09779 AAS 19845 b

104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
SB2153

Introduced 2/7/2025, by Sen. Cristina Castro

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

225 ILCS 90/1.3

Amends the Illinois Physical Therapy Act. Provides that initial physical therapy evaluations without a referral or an established diagnosis may be performed by a licensed physical therapist via telehealth when the physical therapist determines that an in-person examination is not required based on the physical therapist's clinical judgment and the applicable standard of care (rather than cannot be performed via telehealth unless necessary to address a documented hardship). Provides that a physical therapist or a licensed physical therapy assistant may require the patient to undergo an in-person visit instead of providing telehealth services (rather than the use of telehealth as a primary means of delivering physical therapy must be an exception and documentation must support the clinical justification). Provides that a physical therapist providing telehealth must have the capacity to provide or be able to facilitate a referral to in-person care within the State (rather than must only have the capacity to provide in-person care). Provides that the standard of care for a patient receiving physical therapy through telehealth is equal to the standard of care for in-person care.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning regulation.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Physical Therapy Act is amended by changing Section 1.3 as follows:

(225 ILCS 90/1.3)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2026)

Sec. 1.3. Telehealth services.

(a) Physical therapy through telehealth services may be used to address access issues to care, enhance care delivery, or increase the physical therapist's ability to assess and direct the patient's performance in the patient's own environment.

(b) A physical therapist or physical therapist assistant working under the general supervision of a physical therapist may provide physical therapy through telehealth services pursuant to the terms and use defined in the Telehealth Act and the Illinois Insurance Code subject to the following conditions:

(1) Initial physical therapy evaluations without a referral or established diagnosis may only be performed by a licensed physical therapist and may be performed via telehealth when the physical therapist determines that an in-person examination is not required based on the physical therapist's clinical judgment and the applicable standard of care. and cannot be performed via telehealth unless necessary to address a documented hardship, including, but not limited to, geographical, physical, or weather-related conditions.

(2) A physical therapist or a licensed physical therapy assistant may require the patient to undergo an in-person visit instead of providing telehealth services. The use of telehealth as a primary means of delivering physical therapy must be an exception and documentation must support the clinical justification.

(3) A patient receiving physical therapy must be able to request and receive in-person care at any point during their treatment.

(4) A physical therapist providing telehealth must have the capacity to provide or be able to facilitate a referral to in-person care within the State of Illinois.

(5) The standard of care for a patient receiving physical therapy through telehealth is equal to the standard of care for in-person care.

(Source: P.A. 103-849, eff. 1-1-25.)