Salem professionals support legislation to make telemedicine a more routine part of health care

The Oregon State Capitol. (Saphara Harrell/Salem Reporter)

Annaliese Ellsworth, a Salem-based therapist, recalled how it used to be like “rolling the dice” whenever a patient requested a video appointment. 

She followed up these requests with phone calls to insurance companies to see if they’d cover the cost of the visit. Sometimes insurance companies would agree, she said. But a lot of the time the answer was “no.”  

Ellsworth recalled how that all changed overnight last…