Verified October 8, 2026 against the statutes and regulations cited below. Research, not legal advice. All states
What operators miss in Hawaii
- The private payer telehealth sections, including payment parity, are scheduled for repeal and reenactment on Dec. 31, 2027 under SB 1281 (2025); check their status before relying on parity past 2027.
- Professional liability insurers must cover telehealth on the same terms as face-to-face care.
- Audio-only mental health care to a patient at home has its own reimbursement rule, separate from audio-video parity.
Does Hawaii have a telehealth registration for out-of-state clinicians?
Hawaii has no telehealth registration for out-of-state clinicians. A physician-patient relationship may be established by telehealth only by a physician licensed in Hawaii.
- No telehealth-specific registration: a clinician needs the full license or an exception.
Citation: HRS § 453-1.3
When can an out-of-state clinician treat Hawaii patients without a Hawaii license?
An out-of-state physician may use telehealth to consult with a Hawaii-licensed physician who keeps control of the patient, provided the out-of-state physician opens no office and meets no patients in Hawaii.
- Exception for consultation with a licensed physician
Citation: HRS § 453-2
Can a patient relationship start by telehealth in Hawaii?
A Hawaii-licensed physician may establish a physician-patient relationship through telehealth. Opiate and medical cannabis prescribing require an in-person consultation first, with a narrow exception for short opiate supplies within the same medical group.
Citation: HRS § 453-1.3
Does Hawaii require telehealth consent?
No telehealth-specific consent requirement for physicians was found; general informed-consent duties still apply.
- No telehealth-specific consent statute
What limits does Hawaii put on prescribing by telehealth?
Telehealth prescriptions are held to the same standards as appropriate prescribing without an in-person visit. A prescription based solely on an online questionnaire is not treatment and does not meet the standard of care.
- Questionnaire-only prescribing is prohibited
- A relationship for prescribing opiates may be established only after an in-person consultation, except for a supply of three days or less when the patient was seen in person by a provider in the prescriber's medical group.
Citation: HRS § 453-1.3
Does Hawaii require its own controlled-substance registration?
Anyone who prescribes, administers or dispenses controlled substances in Hawaii must hold a Hawaii controlled substance registration, renewed annually, in addition to DEA registration.
- Required, issued by Hawaii Department of Law Enforcement, Narcotics Enforcement Division
Do private payers in Hawaii have to cover telehealth?
- Private-payer telehealth coverage law
- Explicit payment parity
Citation: HRS §§ 431:10A-116.3, 432:1-601.5, 432D-23.5
How does Hawaii treat the corporate practice of medicine?
Adding Hawaii to your telehealth practice?
A State Expansion Pack applies Hawaii's rules to your service line and lists what changes in your workflow before the first visit.
Sources
- index for all fields; text of HRS §§ 453-1.3, 453-2, 431:10A-116.3, 671-7 as quoted; consent (no requirement)
- relationship, prescribing (as quoted by CCHP; site blocked this server)
- licensureExceptions (as quoted by CCHP)
- privatePayer, notes (as quoted by CCHP)
- stateControlledSubstanceRegistration (HRS § 329-32, via search summary)