FCC Issues Advisory Committee Public Safety and Telehealth Reports

The Federal Communications Commission released four reports from its Intergovernmental Advisory Committee (IAC). The reports aim to assist state, local, Tribal, and territorial officials and other stakeholders by offering recommendations and best practices to improve emergency alerting, bolster communications reliability during disasters, and promote the use of telemedicine:

• Multilingual Alerts – The IAC issued a report on the delivery of multilingual emergency alerts to people who communicate in a language other than English or who have a limited understanding of the English language. The report also makes recommendations regarding how alert initiators can deliver alerts to people with disabilities, which the IAC determined presented similar challenges to the delivery of alerts to non-English speakers.
• Plans for Alert Initiation – The IAC offered recommendations and best practices on improving communication between state, local, Tribal, and territorial governments and State Emergency Communication Committees to ensure that Emergency Alerting System procedures, including those for initiation and cancellation of actual alerts and tests, are mutually understood, agreed upon, and documented in state plans.
• Disaster Resiliency – The IAC issued recommendations on fine-tuning state, local, Tribal, and territorial coordination for disaster preparation, response, and restoration efforts, including best practices to promote resilient communications during and after an incident to help ensure first responders and the public have access to reliable communications.
• Clearing the Way for Telemedicine – IAC members identified state, local, Tribal, and territorial regulatory barriers to the use of telemedicine, as well as incentives that promote the adoption of telemedicine. The report discusses key issues, including state and local licensing laws or regulations that prevent telehealth providers from treating patients across state lines, and intrastate restrictions that may inhibit the provision of telemedicine.