Wireline Bureau Releases COVID-19 Telehealth Report
The FCC’s COVID-19 Telehealth Program helped expand telehealth-based treatments related to the COVID-19 pandemic for health care providers, said a final report Tuesday on the program from the Wireline Bureau. The program operated from 2020 until 2023 and provided reimbursements to heath care providers to aid in the delivery of telehealth services to patients in their homes and mobile locations.
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Of the 715 providers who submitted information, 93% said the program benefited patients, and 95% said it supported purchases that were useful in dealing with COVID-19, the report said. Eighty-seven percent of respondents said they used program funding to obtain information services, 62% said they purchased telecommunications services, and 67% used the money to buy connected devices. Thirty-five percent said they encountered issues obtaining services or devices, possibly because of supply chain difficulties during the pandemic.
“Responses to future pandemics and national emergencies will require a balance between careful program controls and unduly burdensome requirements for awardees,” the report said. “Access to telehealth opened up new solutions for key pandemic challenges, including how to safeguard patients and staff, conserve personal protective equipment, and test and treat for COVID-19 at scale.”