The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved an additional 67 funding applications for its COVID-19 Telehealth Program. To date, the program, which was authorized by the CARES Act, has approved funding for 305 healthcare providers in 42 states plus Washington, D.C. for a total of $105 million in funding.
Healthcare providers in both urban and rural areas of the country will use this latest batch of over $20 million in funding to provide telehealth services during the coronavirus pandemic, according to officials. “Since the adoption of the COVID-19 Telehealth Program, the FCC has acted quickly to review applications and approve funding so that more patients can be treated safely at home,” FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said in a statement.
“We have already awarded funds to healthcare providers across our country, from Maine to the Navajo Nation, Washington to Florida, and Minnesota to Mississippi. And we are already seeing the program’s positive impact on the health and wellness of our communities,” he added.
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.
According to the FCC, the program provides immediate support to eligible healthcare providers responding to the COVID-19 pandemic by fully funding their telecommunications services, information services, and devices necessary to provide critical connected care services until the program’s funds have been expended or the COVID-19 pandemic has ended. The applicants are specifically approved by the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau.
The FCC began accepting applications for the program on April 13, and initially approved six of them, totaling $3.23 million in funding. Now, the funding is up to $105 million. The organization says its continuing to evaluate applications and will distribute additional funding on a rolling basis.
Pai continued, “To give just one example, the program is enabling the UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh to remotely monitor children who have received organ transplants and are thus immunocompromised. Additionally, the program is focused on mental as well as physical health. More than 100 mental and behavioral healthcare providers have been awarded funding to ensure that their patients receive the treatment and support they need during the pandemic. We will continue processing applications as quickly as we can in order to promote worthy telehealth projects across the country.”
A full list of the program recipients and more information about how much money each organization was awarded can be viewed here.
