Vermont Lawmaker's Broadband Expansion Bill Would Boost Telehealth

A Vermont Congressman is proposing setting aside almost $80 billion to expand high-speed broadband services throughout the country, a move that directly address one of the primary barriers to telehealth expansion.

U.S. Rep Peter Welch says HR 1672, which he introduced this week, would improve access to healthcare services – as well as schooling, business and entertainment resources – for the estimated 18 million Americans who don’t have high-speed internet.

“The digital divide is real and has only widened since the start of the COVID pandemic,” he said in a press release. “There is no disputing that fast, reliable broadband service is essential in our modern economy. After a year of remote schooling, online medical appointments, and family Zoom calls, the need for high-speed internet for all Americans is even more clear. This bill will include enough resources to make sure that all Americans, no matter their zip code, have access to a ‘future proof’ broadband connection.”

Welch’s bill would authorize $79.5 billion to expand broadband access to households, with 75 percent of that funding going to projects that boost services in communities where download speeds are less than 100 megabits per second. The other 25 percent would go to states for broadband bailout programs.

Welch said at least $100 million would be set aside for small states, to be determined through “new, accurate maps of broadband coverage.” Another $500 million would go to the NTIA Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program and $100 million would be set aside for US territories.

Telehealth advocates have long argued that lack of broadband connectivity is a barrier to telehealth access in rural and underserved communities, as well as a social determinant of health that restricts certain populations from accessing needed care.

While supporters are looking for help through Congressional action, the Federal Communications Commission is taking action through a series of programs aimed at expanding broadband and telehealth services.

The FCC’s Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 that then-President Donald Trump signed in late 2020, sets aside $3.2 billion for the program, which aims to expand broadband and connected health resources during the coronavirus pandemic. That program was recently given the green light to move forward.

In addition, the agency announced in January the first 14 award recipients for its $100 million Connected Care Pilot Program, and it’s preparing to re-launch the COVID-19 Telehealth Program, which used up its $200 million budget in 2020 and was given almost $250 million in the Consolidated Appropriations Act to keep going.