Spurring from the recently-enacted CARES Act, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved six funding applications for health systems to provide telehealth services during the coronavirus pandemic.
As part of the CARES Act—a $2 trillion COVID-19 response bill intended to speed relief across the American economy—Congress appropriated $200 million for the FCC to support healthcare providers’ use of telehealth services during the public health crisis, via the COVID-19 Telehealth Program.
The FCC began accepting applications for the program on April 13, and already approved six of them, totaling $3.23 million in funding. The organization says its continuing to evaluate applications and will distribute additional funding on a rolling basis.
The providers that were awarded the funding include:
- Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta was awarded $727,747 to implement telehealth video visits, virtual check-ins, remote patient monitoring, and e-visits to patient’s hospital rooms.
- Hudson River HealthCare, Inc., in Peekskill, N.Y., was awarded $753,367 for telehealth services to expand its frontline COVID-19 testing and treatment programs serving a large volume of low-income, uninsured, and/or underinsured patients.
- Mount Sinai Health System, in New York City, was awarded $312,500 to provide telehealth devices and services to geriatric and palliative patients who are at high risk for COVID-19 throughout New York City’s five boroughs.
- Neighborhood Health Care, Inc., in Cleveland, Ohio, was awarded $244,282 to provide telemedicine, connected devices, and remote patient monitoring to patients and families impacted by COVID-19 in the City of Cleveland’s West Side neighborhoods, targeting low-income patients with chronic conditions.
- Ochsner Clinic Foundation, in New Orleans, was awarded $1 million for telehealth services and devices to serve high-risk patients and vulnerable populations in Louisiana and Mississippi, to treat COVID-19 patients, and to slow the spread of the virus to others.
- UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was awarded $192,500 to provide telehealth services to children who have received organ transplants and are thus immune compromised and at high risk for COVID-19.
The $1 million awarded to Ochsner is expected to equal or exceed the highest amount of funding given to any one applicant, according to the FCC, which also noted it has not set a limit on the number of eligible healthcare providers that can receive funding.
“Telehealth has emerged as a critical service for health care providers and patients alike during the coronavirus pandemic,” said FCC Chairman Pai. “It promotes social distancing, protects the safety of healthcare professionals and patients, and frees up space in healthcare facilities for those who now need it most. I am confident that the funding we approved today will allow the selected healthcare providers to expand their telehealth efforts, and I look forward to seeing the positive impact they will have in their communities in New York, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, and elsewhere,” he added.
