The week in health tech, explained in plain English.Get the free newsletter →
August 8, 2026

Takeaways from the most recent news in the technology and policies shaping healthcare.

Telehealth

KFF Journalists Unpack Telehealth, ACA, and Covid Injury Fights

KFF Health News reporters made the media rounds to explain three federal health stories that keep landing on executives' desks, with telehealth's uncertain future leading the pack. The reporting, compiled by KFF Health News, tracked how pandemic-era virtual care rules remain tethered to federal authorizations that Congress keeps extending in short bursts rather than making permanent.

For providers and virtual-care companies, that stop-and-start pattern is the core problem. Reimbursement, prescribing rules, and where patients can legally connect from all hinge on deadlines that shift with each budget fight, making it hard to plan investments or hiring.

The same round of appearances covered Affordable Care Act sign-up trends and HHS's list of recognized Covid injuries, a compensation question that continues to draw scrutiny. Together the topics show how much of the industry's near-term direction still runs through Washington, where policy uncertainty, not technology, is the binding constraint on telehealth's growth.

More in Telehealth

Telehealth

Becker's Names 272 Telehealth Companies to Know for 2026

Becker's Hospital Review named 272 telehealth companies to know for 2026, reflecting how virtual care became permanent, crowded, and increasingly specialized.

Why it matters: The scale of the list shows telehealth is now core healthcare infrastructure, raising the bar for vendors to prove value beyond access.

Telehealth

Teladoc Named NBA Players Union's Preferred Virtual Care Provider

The NBA players union named Teladoc Health its preferred virtual care provider in a multiyear deal covering active and retired players and their families.

Why it matters: A high-profile institutional endorsement gives Teladoc a marketing win as it fights to stabilize growth in a crowded telehealth market.

Telehealth

DiMe Launches Initiative to Smooth Virtual-First Care Contracts

DiMe launched an initiative to help payers and virtual care providers navigate the contract implementation problems that commonly stall virtual-first care programs.

Why it matters: Contract friction, not technology, is often what stalls virtual care programs, and standardizing implementation could help the model scale.