Telemedicine for fall prevention in older adults

Telemedicine allows for synchronous virtual meetings between health care providers and their patients (Federal Communications Commission, n.d.). In March 2020, the U.S. Congress passed a waiver that temporarily allowed occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) to provide telemedicine services to beneficiaries of Medicare and Medicaid (Cottrill et al., 2024). Although this temporary authorization has been extended multiple times, most recently in 2026, its temporary status continues to limit patients’ consistent access to needed services (Bopp & Karr, 2026). Practitioners initially used telemedicine to reach rural and underserved populations; however, its applications have broadened to address the needs of specific groups, including older adults at risk of falling (Taylor et al., 2025).