[{"innerBlocks":[],"name":"core\/freeform","postId":641,"blockType":{"name":"core\/freeform","keywords":[],"attributes":{"content":{"type":"string","source":"raw"},"lock":{"type":"object"}},"providesContext":[],"usesContext":[],"selectors":[],"supports":{"className":false,"customClassName":false,"reusable":false},"styles":[],"variations":[],"apiVersion":3,"title":"Classic","description":"Use the classic WordPress editor.","category":"text"},"originalContent":"The Federal Communications Commission wants to ensure that funding for rural broadband services supporting telehealth technologies is being spent efficiently to benefit patients in underserved parts of the country.Towards that end, the FCC on Thursday issued a \u201creport and order\u201d to promote transparency, accountability and predictability in the Rural Health Care Program, which supports telemedicine services to help rural communities access healthcare.\u201cToday\u2019s action takes a number of steps to reform the distribution of RHC funding, in particular by revising the rules governing the Telecom Program to simplify calculation of the urban rate\u2014the amount healthcare providers pay\u2014and the rural rate\u2014the amount that service providers receive,\u201d according to the FCC\u2019s announcement. The RHC Program provides reduced rates to rural healthcare providers for telecommunications services and Internet access charges. Last year, the FCC raised the annual cap on the RHC Program\u2019s spending from $400 million to $571 million\u2014an increase of more than 40 percent\u2014for the first time in the agency\u2019s history.

\u201cThis was a necessary change, but not a sufficient one to guarantee the program\u2019s long-term health,\u201d said FCC Chairman Ajit Pai in a written statement. \u201cWe also need to do more to root out waste, fraud and abuse in the program, for every dollar misspent is a dollar not devoted to telemedicine and the patients who need it.\u201dAlso See<\/b>: FCC commissioners boost Rural Health Care Program cap to $571M<\/a>Reforms to the RHC Program laid out in the order include:\u00b7 Targeting funding to rural areas in the most need of healthcare services so as to ensure that\u2014when demand exceeds available funding\u2014eligible rural healthcare providers continue to benefit from RHC Program funding by prioritizing support based on rurality and whether the area is medically underserved.\u00b7 Improving competitive bidding in the program to make it a more productive mechanism for healthcare providers to identify and select cost-effective service offerings available to them in rural areas.\u00b7 Developing a series of program-wide rules and procedures to simplify the application process for participants that provide more clarity regarding programmatic procedures.According to Pai, Thursday\u2019s FCC order will \u201creplace guesswork with certainty for rural healthcare providers\u201d who \u201cwill receive funding decisions more quickly so that they can focus on delivering cutting-edge healthcare to their patients.\u201dAt the same time, he acknowledged that some service providers are unhappy about some of the actions taken in the FCC order. \u201cThese reforms will also reduce waste by ending communications service providers\u2019 ability to manipulate the calculation of rates for their own benefit,\u201d Pai added. \u201cBut the purpose of this program isn\u2019t to pad their bottom line\u2014it\u2019s to make it easier and cheaper for healthcare providers to treat their patients.\u201d","saveContent":"The Federal Communications Commission wants to ensure that funding for rural broadband services supporting telehealth technologies is being spent efficiently to benefit patients in underserved parts of the country.Towards that end, the FCC on Thursday issued a \u201creport and order\u201d to promote transparency, accountability and predictability in the Rural Health Care Program, which supports telemedicine services to help rural communities access healthcare.\u201cToday\u2019s action takes a number of steps to reform the distribution of RHC funding, in particular by revising the rules governing the Telecom Program to simplify calculation of the urban rate\u2014the amount healthcare providers pay\u2014and the rural rate\u2014the amount that service providers receive,\u201d according to the FCC\u2019s announcement. The RHC Program provides reduced rates to rural healthcare providers for telecommunications services and Internet access charges. Last year, the FCC raised the annual cap on the RHC Program\u2019s spending from $400 million to $571 million\u2014an increase of more than 40 percent\u2014for the first time in the agency\u2019s history.\u201cThis was a necessary change, but not a sufficient one to guarantee the program\u2019s long-term health,\u201d said FCC Chairman Ajit Pai in a written statement. \u201cWe also need to do more to root out waste, fraud and abuse in the program, for every dollar misspent is a dollar not devoted to telemedicine and the patients who need it.\u201dAlso See<\/b>: FCC commissioners boost Rural Health Care Program cap to $571M<\/a>Reforms to the RHC Program laid out in the order include:\u00b7 Targeting funding to rural areas in the most need of healthcare services so as to ensure that\u2014when demand exceeds available funding\u2014eligible rural healthcare providers continue to benefit from RHC Program funding by prioritizing support based on rurality and whether the area is medically underserved.\u00b7 Improving competitive bidding in the program to make it a more productive mechanism for healthcare providers to identify and select cost-effective service offerings available to them in rural areas.\u00b7 Developing a series of program-wide rules and procedures to simplify the application process for participants that provide more clarity regarding programmatic procedures.According to Pai, Thursday\u2019s FCC order will \u201creplace guesswork with certainty for rural healthcare providers\u201d who \u201cwill receive funding decisions more quickly so that they can focus on delivering cutting-edge healthcare to their patients.\u201dAt the same time, he acknowledged that some service providers are unhappy about some of the actions taken in the FCC order. \u201cThese reforms will also reduce waste by ending communications service providers\u2019 ability to manipulate the calculation of rates for their own benefit,\u201d Pai added. \u201cBut the purpose of this program isn\u2019t to pad their bottom line\u2014it\u2019s to make it easier and cheaper for healthcare providers to treat their patients.\u201d","order":0,"get_parent":{},"attributes":[],"attributesType":{"content":{"type":"string","source":"raw"},"lock":{"type":"object"}},"dynamicContent":""}]

FCC takes steps to reform Rural Health Care Program

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