To listen to the podcast click HERE.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Office of U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today released the January episode of the Senator’s “Inside Maine” podcast. In this edition, the Senator and his guests discuss the opportunities and challenges of telehealth in Maine and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on telemedicine. Senator King, a long-time advocate for quality healthcare access, was joined by Dr. Michael Ross, the Medical Director of Telehealth for Northern Light Health (NLH) and Beth Dube, a psychiatric nurse practitioner (NP) at Maine Behavioral Healthcare (MBH). Together, the Senator and his guests highlight the evolution of telehealth and its ability to serve residents remotely — removing timely, costly, and physical barriers to medical care.

“The pandemic has revolutionized healthcare for Maine people by bringing the services of a doctor’s office to the comfort of home. Today, you don’t have to drive an hour in a snowstorm to see a mental health professional, all you have to do is pick up the phone or turn on your laptop,” said Senator King. “This massive expansion in telehealth has provided life-changing care to rural and older populations that otherwise could not attend appointments, helped doctors manage their workload, and led to significant savings for what would typically be emergency trip visits. It was a pleasure to sit down with Dr. Michael Ross and Beth Dube to discuss the opportunities and challenges we’re seeing in the telehealth and how they are shaping the future of healthcare for Maine people. I look forward to continuing to work with healthcare professionals like Dr. Ross and Beth Dube and my colleagues in Washington, to reduce technological and regulatory barriers to quality, accessible care.”

Dr. Michael Ross, MD, FAAP, FACMI, is the Chief Medical Information Officer at Eastern Maine Medical Center – Northern Light Health, and the Medical Director of Telehealth for Northern Light Health in Bangor, Maine. Dr. Ross splits his time between Medical Informatics/TeleHealth and General Pediatrics. When not shepherding bits and bytes of medical data, he can be found herding small children in the Pediatric clinic. Dr. Ross graduated from his pediatric residency at Tufts-New England Medical Center in 2003 and began practicing in Bangor following his residency.

Beth Dube is a nurse practitioner (NP) at Maine Behavioral Healthcare specializing in psychiatric health. After obtaining her undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Southern Maine in 1999, she started her journey in mental healthcare and worked in a variety of roles and settings including housing outreach, group home staff member, case manager, psychiatric technician at Spring Harbor Hospital (SHH), and nurse at SHH. In July of 2016, she joined MBH and has been providing medication management services to adults at the Lancaster Street Clinic.  In addition to her clinical work, she currently serves on the Maine Behavioral Healthcare Board of Trustees and the Maine Behavioral Healthcare Board of Trustees Quality and Excellence Committee. 

In Maine, mental healthcare is one of the most common uses for telehealth. Between April 2021-April 2022, MBH had 150,000 patient encounters of which nearly 60% were telehealth visits. CMS also found that behavioral health saw the largest increase in utilization among Medicare beneficiaries, with utilization increasing 32 times over pre-pandemic levels as discussed in a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) study. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 37% of adults used telehealth services nationwide in 2021, with those over the age of 65 seeing the highest use rates.

Senator King is a long-time advocate for the availability and accessibility of telemedicine. With expanded telemedicine services only authorized through 2024 and requiring a permanently extension to prevent a devastating rollback to pre-pandemic legal restrictions, Senator King co-sponsored of the bipartisan CONNECT for Health Act and the Telehealth Modernization Act which make current telehealth flexibilities permanent and ensure Medicare beneficiaries can continue enjoying access to telemedicine. Senator King also introduced the CARE for Mental Health Professionals Act, and co-sponsored the TREAT Act, to address interstate medical professional licensing issues.

Access to high-speed, affordable broadband also remains an obstacle to widespread adoption of telemedicine, but one that Senator King has worked to address. He helped pass the two largest investments in broadband infrastructure ever, with the bipartisan Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act and the American Rescue Plan. In the years ahead, Maine is expected to receive over $400 million to improve connectivity through affordable high-speed, future-proof broadband infrastructure. This, in turn, will help expand the reach of telehealth opportunities in all corners of the state.

The “Inside Maine Podcast with Senator Angus King” is a 30-minute program that aims to help keep Maine people informed about issues of the day, how they affect life in the state, and how they factor into Senator King’s work as one of two independents in the U.S. Senate. Senator King’s podcast airs on Newsradio WGAN in Portland, Maine between 10 and 11 a.m. on the last Saturday of every month. 

To read Senator King’s Bangor Daily News Op-Ed on the importance of telemedicine in Maine, click HERE.