AMA updates Code of Ethics to include telemedicine guidelines

The American Medical Association’s Code of Medical Ethics will now include guidelines for dealing with telemedicine. The revisions to the 169-year code were approved June 13 at the organization’s annual meeting in Chicago.

The updated version of the ethics code is not yet available online, but Forbes reports that the telemedicine updates include new advice on informing patients about the limitations of telehealth. The update encourages patients to schedule follow-up care and contact their primary care physicians after receiving telemedicine advice. The AMA also advocates for wider access to telemedicine for populations that might need it.

AMA board of trustees member Jack Resneck Jr., MD, told the conference attendees that the telemedicine ethics rules fit in with the code’s overall message, Forbes reported.

“The new AMA ethical guidance notes that while new technologies and new models of care will continue to emerge, physicians’ fundamental ethical responsibilities do not change,” he said.

The telemedicine ethics updates come as more physicians and patients are coming in contact with new technology in the course of treatment. The American Telemedicine Association (ATA) calls it a “rapidly” growing market, with more than 200 telehealth networks and 3,500 telemedicine sites in the U.S.

According to the ATA, the practice generally refers to the use of electronic communication to monitor vital signs, deliver health advice and offer referral services through websites, mobile apps and other platforms.

The updates related to telemedicine ethics were part of a larger revision to the code that was underway for eight years. The rest of those changes were also approved June 13. In a statement, the AMA called it the first major revision to the document as a whole in more than 50 years.

 “The modernization project ensures that the Code of Medical Ethics will remain a useful and effective resource that physicians can continue to rely on, while remaining faithful to the virtues of fidelity, humanity, loyalty, tenderness, confidentiality and integrity enshrined in the original Code,” said AMA President Steven J. Stack, MD, in a statement.

The original AMA Code of Medical Ethics was published in 1847, with five new editions released since.