14 Telehealth Projects to Get FCC Connected Care Pilot Program Funding

Some of the largest telehealth programs in the country are among 14 selected for the first round of grants from the Federal Communications Commission’s Connected Care Pilot Program.

The projects, spanning 150 sites in 11 states, will be getting roughly $26.5 million from the three-year, $100 million program, which aims to improve broadband connectivity in underserved parts of the country where access to care is limited or hindered.

“The events of the past year have highlighted that connectivity is critical to address current and future health challenges in this country, from chronic disease to COVID-19, in particular for our nation’s veterans and low-income Americans,” then-FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said in a press release issued last week. “Today’s announcement lays the groundwork for this connected care future as these projects will help us better understand how telehealth can reduce costs and increase the quality of care, in areas of the greatest need across the country.”

The money, coming from the FCC’s Universal Service Fund, will be used to defray roughly 85 percent of the costs associated with launching or expanding connected health platforms, including broadband connectivity for both providers and patients and telemedicine equipment.

The first round of awards, totaling $26.6 million, goes to:

• Banyan Community Health Center of Coral Gables, FL, which is getting $911,833 to provide remote patient monitoring, video visits and other services to low-income and veteran patients who are suffering from chronic/long-term conditions, high-risk pregnancy, infectious disease including COVID-19, mental health conditions and opioid dependency in and around Miami;
• Duke University Health System, based in Durham, NC, which is getting $1,464,759 to provide remote patient monitoring and video visits to a large number of low-income patients suffering from heart failure, cancer and infectious diseases;
• Geisinger, a Pennsylvania-based healthcare consortium with sites in Lewiston, Danville, Jersey Shore, Bloomsburg, Coal Township and Wilkes-Barre, PA, is getting $1,739,100 to launch an RPM program for roughly 1,000 low-income patients in rural communities, with a focus on chronic disease management and high-risk pregnancies, as well as infectious disease and behavioral health conditions;
• The Grady Health System in Atlanta is getting $635,596 to provide Internet connectivity to an estimated 1,896 primarily low-income and high-risk patients who are unable to access video-based telemedicine services, and to launch RPM and telehealth services to treat vulnerable patients with conditions such as congestive heart failure, COVID19, hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and HIV;
• Intermountain Centers for Human Development, a healthcare consortium with sites in Casa Grande, Nogales, Coolidge; and Eloy, AZ, is getting $237,150 to launch telehealth services for roughly 3,400 patients to treat mental health conditions, opioid dependency and other substance abuse disorders;
• The MA FQHC Telehealth Consortium, comprising 76 federally qualified health centers in Massachusetts, is getting $3,121,879 to provide mental health and substance abuse disorder treatment through RPM, video visits and other connected health services to roughly 75,000 patients in Massachusetts, including significant numbers of veterans and low-income patients;
• Mountain Valley Health Center, a healthcare consortium with seven sites in northeastern California, is getting $550,800 to provide telehealth and RPM services for roughly 200 rural, low-income and veteran patients living with hypertension and diabetes;.
• Neighborhood Healthcare, with sites in Escondido, El Cajon, El Cajon, Temecula and Pauma Valley, CA, is getting $129,744 to provide broadband access to some 340 primarily low-income patients suffering from chronic and long-term conditions;
• OCHIN, a healthcare consortium encompassing 8 FQHCs with 15 sites in Ohio, 16 sites in Oregon and 13 sites in Washington, is getting $5,834,620 to provide RPM and telehealth services to an estimated 3,450 low-income patients to treat high-risk pregnancy, maternal health conditions, mental health conditions and chronic and long-term conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease;
• The Phoebe Putney Health System, based in Georgia, is getting $673,200 to provide RPM and telehealth services for more than 4,000 low-income patients suffering from chronic conditions or mental health conditions;
• Summit Pacific Medical Center, based in Elma, WA, is getting $169,977 to provide RPM and telehealth services for roughly 25 veterans and low-income patients suffering from chronic conditions, infectious diseases, mental health conditions and opioid dependency;
• Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia is getting $4,254,250 to provide RPM and telehealth services to about 100,000 patients suffering from chronic/long-term conditions and mental health conditions; and
• The University of Mississippi Medical Center, based in Jackson, MS, is getting $2,377,875 to provide RPM and ambulatory telehealth services to roughly 6,000 low-income patients suffering from chronic conditions or illnesses requiring long-term care.

The program was unveiled in 2018 by FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr and Mississippi Senator Roger Wicker.

“This new initiative is the healthcare equivalent of shifting from Blockbuster to Netflix,” Carr, a longtime support of telehealth initiatives, said in a November 2020 press release. “With smartphones, tablets, and connected healthcare devices, patients no longer need to travel to brick-and-mortar facilities or meet in person with a doctor to receive high-quality care. I am excited to get this program going because it will improve patient outcomes while cutting healthcare costs.”

“The FCC’s new Connected Care initiative can ensure that Americans receive quality care while continuing to maintain physical separation,” he added. “And it can be used to treat a wide range of health conditions - such as opioid dependency, diabetes, heart disease, mental health conditions, and high-risk pregnancy. Focusing this initiative on low-income Americans and veterans will ensure that everyone has a fair shot at the benefits that this new trend in telehealth can deliver.”

The program is one of three aimed at expanding broadband connectivity and telehealth programs in rural America.

The COVID-19 Telehealth Program was launched in April 2020 by the FCC with $200 million in funding from the CARES Act, and issued awards to some 540 healthcare programs across the country before running out of funding in July. Another $250 million was appropriated for the program in last month’s coronavirus relief bill, and the FCC is now seeking advice on how to fine-tune the evaluation and selection process.

In addition, the Health and Human Services Department, through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), launched an $8 million pilot program earlier this month to expand broadband connectivity and telehealth adoption in Alaska, Michigan, Texas and West Virginia.