INSIGHT
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Although implementation is not immediate, the timeline is swift: Federal contractors and subcontractors should therefore carefully review their existing hiring, promotion, and compensation programs, as well as their purchasing and subcontracting programs, and work with legal counsel to ensure compliance with this new clause.
On March 26, 2026, President Trump issued Executive Order No. 14398, Addressing DEI Discrimination by Federal Contractors (the EO), 91 Fed. Reg. 16147 (Mar. 31, 2026). The EO sets forth a new contract clause to be inserted into contracts, contract-like instruments, and subcontracts at every level to prohibit Federal contractors from engaging in “racially discriminatory DEI activities” as defined by the EO.
The EO requires all Executive departments and agencies to insert the clause into contracts and contract-like instruments within 30 days, additionally directing the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) consistent with the EO. Federal contractors and subcontractors should review their hiring, promotion, and compensation programs, as well as their purchasing and subcontracting programs, and work with legal counsel to ensure that those programs comply with existing laws while maintaining alignment with company values.
If Congress does not reach an agreement prior to the expiration of these flexibilities on January 30, as of January 31, 2026, the Medicare telehealth flexibilities revert to pre-pandemic limitations:
Return of geographic and originating site requirement. Medicare patients can only receive non-behavioral/mental-health telehealth services from specific originating sites, such as a provider’s office, a hospital, or a skilled nursing facility.
Limited provider type eligibility. The list of providers eligible to provide Medicare covered telehealth services is limited to physicians, physician assistants, advanced practice registered nurses, certain behavioral health providers, and registered dietitians or nutrition professionals.
Audio-only telehealth ends. Audio-only telehealth services will only be covered for behavioral/mental health.
Rural health clinic/federally qualified health center flexibility as distant sites ends. These rural entities may no longer serve as distant sites for telehealth services other than behavioral/mental telehealth.
Return of the mental health visit in-person requirement. For diagnosis, evaluation, or treatment of a behavioral health disorder via telehealth to be covered by Medicare, an in-person visit is required within six months before the initial telehealth visit and every 12 months thereafter, with limited exceptions.
In addition to the expiration of the telehealth flexibilities, the Acute Hospital Care at Home waivers would expire on January 30, 2026.
The Medicare telehealth flexibilities previously lapsed on October 1, 2025, when Congress failed to pass a continuing resolution funding the government and passing the health extenders. When Congress passed a funding bill six weeks later, the bill provided retroactive coverage for telehealth services furnished during the lapse.
