Rural Health Care

The Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition asked the Federal Communications Commission to expedite affordable broadband solutions for unconnected Americans. The novel coronavirus is driving schools to online learning and increasing healthcare providers’ reliance on telehealth solutions.

The Federal Communications Commission adopted an Order to fully fund all eligible Rural Health Care Program services for the current funding year with an additional $42.19 million in funding. This action will help ensure that healthcare providers have the resources they need to promote telehealth solutions for patients. The total Rural Health Care Program demand for FY 2019 was $719.48 million, which exceeded the $677.29 million in previously available funding.

The Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau announces the E-Rate and Rural Health Care (RHC) programs’ funding caps for funding year 2020. The new caps represent a 1.8% inflation-adjusted increase in each program cap from funding year 2019. The E-Rate program funding cap for funding year 2020 is $4,226,120,519. The new cap represents a 1.8% inflation-adjusted increase in the $4,151,395,402 cap from funding year 2019. The RHC Program funding cap for funding year 2020 is $604,759,306. The cap for upfront payments and multi-year commitments under the Healthcare Connect

The Senate Commerce Committee approved the Advancing Critical Connectivity Expands Service, Small Business Resources, Opportunities, Access, and Data Based on Assessed Need and Demand (ACCESS BROADBAND) Act (S. 1046), as well as two-other communications-related bills. The bill creates the Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth within the National Telecommunications & Information Administration, the White House's chief communications policy adviser. The office will track the construction, use and access to broadband infrastructure built with federal subsidies.

The mounting school closures amid the coronavirus outbreak in the US are exposing major equity gaps in access to technology and the internet, and the Federal Communications Commission needs to step in, according to FCC commissioners. "Now is absolutely the time to talk about the coronavirus disruption and how technology can help," FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel told a Senate hearing.

Community anchor institutions should be at the center of any comprehensive national strategy to promote the availability and use of High-Performance Broadband. Community anchor institutions use broadband to provide essential services to their community, such as education, information access, and telehealth services. But in the 21st century, community anchors’ missions are moving beyond their walls. Libraries no longer deliver knowledge that is housed only within their buildings or the covers of hardbound books.

It's budget season. Federal departments and agencies are making their funding requests to Congress for fiscal year 2021 (starting October 1, 2020 and ending September 30, 2021). And part of the ask is reporting how well an agency did achieving its FY 2019 goals. One of the primary goals of the Federal Communications Commission is to close the digital divide in rural America.

One theme I keep hearing at the National Rural Health Association's 2020 summit is “rural America is having a moment; let’s make it a movement.” And there’s certainly a new movement in telehealth that we should tap into.  Given the significant cost savings and improved patient outcomes associated with connected care, we should align public policy in support of this movement in telehealth.

The percentage of end-user phone bills that go toward the Universal Service Fund (USF) has been climbing and there are serious questions about the sustainability of that funding mechanism, despite a relatively stable USF budget. The money for USF comes from companies that offer interstate and international long-distance telecom services (i.e., voice services). At one time most of the money went toward voice services but over the years, more and more of it has gone towards broadband.

Congress is on the verge of passing legislation to improve broadband maps. Unfortunately, tucked inside the “Broadband DATA Act” is a provision that could unintentionally jeopardize broadband funding for schools, libraries, and healthcare providers.