WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senators Brian Schatz (D-HI), Ed Markey (D-MA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and a bipartisan group of 19 other Senators in urging the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to increase subsidies to health care providers through the Rural Health Care Program, which would ensure that providers have the resources they need to deliver and expand telehealth services for rural communities during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
“In this time of crisis, it is imperative we do our part to ensure the safety and security of our health care providers and patients,” the Senators wrote. “That is why we are writing to ask you to waive current FCC rules and help increase access to care by increasing subsidies for Rural Health Care Program participants in Funding Year 2019 during this crisis.”
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The coronavirus outbreak has caused an immense strain on health care providers in the United States. Telehealth offers an alternative to traditional services, allowing providers to deliver quality care to patients online without risking further spread of the virus. It is also often less expensive and more efficient than traditional methods of care. By making more subsidies available through the Rural Health Care Program, the federal government would ensure that providers receive the necessary resources for additional telehealth capacity or other needs during this public health emergency.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended telehealth to both screen for COVID-19 as well as deliver other services that do not require a patient to visit the hospital. Congress has also supported the use of telehealth during this public health emergency through the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020, which waives restrictions on the use of telehealth in Medicare during the coronavirus outbreak.
Along with Durbin, Duckworth, Schatz, Markey, and Bennet, the letter was also signed by Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Angus King (I-ME), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Jon Tester (D-MT), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Kamala Harris (D-CA).
The full text of the letter is available here and below:
