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May 01, 2020
Health Law Weekly

COVID-19 Telehealth Program Accepting Applications

  • May 01, 2020
  • Ashley L. Thomas , Morris Manning & Martin LLP
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On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act into law. The CARES Act appropriated $200 million to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to establish the COVID-19 Telehealth Program to help health care providers offer connected care services to patients in their homes or mobile locations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. On April 2, 2020, the FCC adopted a Report and Order establishing the COVID-19 Telehealth Program, and the FCC started accepting applications for funding on April 13, 2020. No deadline has been set for the filing of COVID-19 Telehealth Program applications. It is a first come, first serve program, so interested health care providers should considering applying as soon as possible.

The COVID-19 Telehealth Program is limited to nonprofit and public eligible health care providers that fall within the categories of health care providers in Section 254(h)(7)(B) of the 1996 Telecommunications Act:

  1. post-secondary educational institutions offering health care instruction, teaching hospitals, and medical schools;
  2. community health centers or health centers providing health care to migrants;
  3. local health departments or agencies;
  4. community mental health centers;
  5. not-for-profit hospitals;
  6. rural health clinics;
  7. skilled nursing facilities; or
  8. consortia of health care providers consisting of one or more entities falling into the first seven categories.

Vendors of eligible services and devices are not eligible to apply for funding. The COVID-19 Telehealth Program is only open to eligible health care providers. 

The types of equipment and services that are eligible for funding under the COVID-19 Telehealth Program include:

  • Telecommunications services and broadband connectivity services, which include voice services and Internet connectivity services for health care providers or their patients.

  • Information services, which include:

    • Remote patient monitoring platforms and services;

    • Patient-reported outcome platforms;

    • Store and forward services, such as asynchronous transfer of patient images and data for interpretation by a physician; and

    • Platforms and services to provide synchronous video consultation. 

  • Internet-connected devices and equipment, which include:

    • Tablets;
    • Smartphones;
    • Connected devices necessary to receive services at home (e.g., broadband-enabled blood pressure monitoring devices) for patients or health care provider use; and
    • Telemedicine kiosks, carts for the health care provider site.

Funding will not be provided for personnel costs (including but not limited to costs for IT staff, project managers, or medical professionals), marketing costs, administrative expenses, or training costs. 

Interested health care providers must complete several steps to apply for funding for the COVID-19 Telehealth Program. To file a request for funding, applicants must:

  1. Obtain an eligibility determination from the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) by submitting an FCC Form 460. Health care provider sites that USAC has already deemed eligible to participate in the Commission’s existing Rural Health Care (RHC) Programs may rely on that eligibility determination for the COVID-19 Telehealth Program. Applicants that do not yet have an eligibility determination from USAC can still nonetheless file an application with the Commission for the COVID-19 Telehealth Program while their FCC Form 460 is pending with USAC.
  2. Obtain an FCC Registration Number (FRN) by registering in the Commission Registration System (CORES). Applicants need the person certifying the application to be registered in CORES. If using an existing FRN, then make sure that it is associated with the CORES account of the person certifying the application. For a consortium, the portal will allow the applicant to include multiple health care providers on the applications. An FRN is required for each health care provider in the consortium.
  3. Submit an application for funding through the COVID-19 Telehealth Program to the FCC through the FCC’s online portal.

To receive payments, applicants will need to register with System for Award Management. The FCC urges applicants to start this registration before they receive a funding decision. The FCC does not anticipate awarding more than $1 million to any single applicant. The goal of the COVID-19 Telehealth Program is to select applicants that serve areas that are hardest hit by the pandemic and where the support will have the most impact on meeting health care needs.

Since the FCC started accepting applications, the agency has awarded $6.94 million to 11 health systems in eight states. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai noted in a press release on April 16 that “Telehealth has emerged as a critical service for health care providers and patients alike during the coronavirus pandemic. It promotes social distancing, protects the safety of health care professionals and patients, and frees up space in health care facilities for those who now need it most.” The FCC will continue to review applications until the funding is exhausted or until the current pandemic ends.

Additionally, the FCC suspended its “red light” rule, which would prevent health care providers who owe money to the FCC from participating in the COVID-19 Telehealth Program. The FCC recognizes that the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic along with the efforts by health care providers to identify and treat patients with the virus has created extremely unusual circumstances. In the public interest, the FCC has waived the “red light” rule, which will be limited only to the COVID-19 Telehealth Program.

 

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