Missouri County Uses CARES Act Funding for School Telehealth Project

Some 21 schools in rural Missouri are getting telehealth services in a partnership with Freeman Neosho Hospital.

The program, funded through the CARES Act, will place telemedicine carts in schools throughout Newton County and give staff and students on-demand access to care providers at the Neosho-based hospital. It will serve more than 8,000 students.

The project was approved by the Newton County Commissioners, who are using about $385,000 of federal grants issued to the county to cover expenses incurred during the coronavirus pandemic.  

“We feel like going into the future, not just the COVID but through the flu seasons and whatever pandemic might come our way,” Presiding Commissioner Bill Reiboldt told the Joplin Globe. “This is huge for school nurses, for the children involved and early detection and prevention of possibly a flu epidemic or a COVID epidemic within the schools.”

School-based telehealth programs have been among the most active connected health projects during the COVID-19 crisis, as communities and healthcare providers partner to improve access to care for students, teachers, staff and family members regardless of whether the schools are physically open. Many of these programs are also offering sorely needed telemental health services.

With municipal governments struggling economically, the key is in providing federal funding to support the new programs and the technology they need. Some were funded by the Federal Communications Commission’s COVID-19 Telehealth Program, which shut down in July after exhausting its $200 million bank account. Others are being supported through the Department of Agriculture’s Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) grant program, which issued another $72 million this week for 116 projects across the country.

In other cases, state and federal governments are directing federal relief funds – such as CARES Act grants – to school-based telehealth programs. In Newton County, officials have so far earmarked more than $1.4 million of the almost $7 million in grants, and have so far funded the telehealth project through the end of the year.

Hospital officials said the CARES Act funding will cover the telemedicine technology in Newton County schools, and they’re covering the remaining costs. They’re also looking to expand their platform to support schools in neighboring McDonald County.

“We recognize the relationship between successful learning and remaining healthy,” Renee Denton, the hospital’s chief operating officer, told the newspaper, also noting the hospital has set up initial two-year agreements with participating school districts. “We also recognize the tremendous responsibility placed on the shoulders of the school districts and on the school nurses. During this COVID pandemic, their job is much more difficult. We want to support our schools.”

Officials stress that the telehealth program won’t replace the school nurse, but will be used as a new resource to assist those nurses.

While programs typically struggle to gain a foothold because people are wary of trying new technology, this one might have gotten a boost from Reiboldt.

“I had the opportunity to use telemedicine, and it’s great,” the commissioner told the newspaper. “You can call a doctor almost immediately. He can prescribe medications and get it started. It takes a lot to get in to see a doctor, and you don’t want to overload the emergency rooms. What will really make this program work is parent involvement. I think it’s the future.”