HHS Pours $55M Into Boosting Virtual Care Access

To support those who are unable to travel, have a low income, or lack needed resources, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is providing $55 million in new funds to various community health centers to help them offer necessary virtual care resources.

The funds will be used to support virtual care services, such as telehealth, remote patient monitoring, and other digital patient tools, at 29 different health centers funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

"Virtual care has been a game-changer for patients, especially during the pandemic," said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, in the news release. "This funding will help health centers leverage the latest technology and innovations to expand access to quality primary care for underserved communities."

The COVID-19 pandemic brought massive changes to care delivery at community health centers.

Health centers reported a 6,000 percent increase in virtual care between 2019 and 2020, expanding the number of virtual visits from 478,333 to 28.5 million, according to the press release.

In addition to this change, the number of locations that implemented a virtual care option went from 592 in 2019 to 1,362 in 2022. This expansion represents a 130 percent increase, the release states.  

Through this new funding, HSS does not intend to replace in-person care with virtual care, but rather take proactive steps in creating more care delivery options.

“Today’s awards will help ensure that new ways to deliver primary care are reaching the communities that need it most,” said HRSA Administrator Carole Johnson, in the news release. “Our funding will help health centers continue to expand their virtual work while maintaining their vital in-person services in communities across the country.”

Community health centers have consistently proven themselves as key sources of care within their communities.

For example, a recent study that focused on community health centers revealed that during the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, they significantly extended access to racial and -ethnic minorities, administering over 60 percent of their 19.2 million vaccine doses to people of color. Community health centers have also been very resourceful regarding COVID-19 tests, allocating 17 million in all. Of these tests, racial and -ethnic minorities received two-thirds.

The new HHS funds come as efforts to solidify telehealth access through legislation growth.

The U.S. Senate recently gained a piece of bipartisan legislation that allows Medicare beneficiaries to continue to access various telehealth resources for two years following the COVID-19 pandemic. The virtual care services that this legislation applies to include those provided by federally qualified health centers, which are the entities that the HSS funds.

Further, the legislation would enact a study that evaluates which telehealth flexibilities are the most beneficial for healthcare stakeholders. The reason for this is to provide Congress with information regarding which flexibilities are worth sustaining after the pandemic.

In addition to increasing telehealth accessibility, community health centers have consistently proven themselves as solid providers.