On April 29, 2021, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will begin accepting applications for the second round of its COVID-19 Telehealth Program (the “Program”). However, the application filing window will only be open for a very short seven day period and will close on May 6, 2021. To give all applicants an equal opportunity to have their applications reviewed, the FCC announced that all applications filed during this period will be reviewed once the application filing window has closed.
Initially, in March 2020, Congress appropriated $200 million for the first round of the COVID-19 Telehealth Program funding under the CARES Act. An additional $249.95 million was provided to the FCC in December 2020, under the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA), to helping address inequities in access to health care service. The COVID-19 Telehealth Program was designed to help health care providers purchase telecommunications equipment, broadband connectivity, and other devices necessary for providing telehealth services to rural, low-income and underserved populations.
The Program is limited to nonprofit and public health care providers (47 U.S.C. § 254(h)(7)(B)) that fall within the following categories:
- Post-secondary educational institutions offering health care instruction, teaching hospitals, and medical schools;
- Community health centers or health centers providing health care to migrants;
- Local health departments or agencies;
- Community mental health centers;
- Not-for-profit hospitals;
- Rural health clinics;
- Skilled nursing facilities; or
- Consortia of health care providers consisting of one or more entities falling into one of the first seven categories.
Blog Editors
Recent Updates
- Podcast: Key Changes in Finalized Antitrust Merger Guidelines – Diagnosing Health Care
- FDA Releases Draft Guidance on New Dietary Ingredient Notification Master Files for Dietary Supplements
- Updated Requirements for Informed Consent: HHS Issues New Guidance on Sensitive Exams
- Importance of Negotiating Assignment and Subletting Provisions in Health Care Leases
- Kentucky Law to Expand Assault in the Third Degree Beyond Healthcare Providers at Hospitals to Include Clinic, Dental, Outpatient Facility Employees, and More