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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Broadband

Roundtable Discussion: Examining the Role of Telehealth during COVID-19 and Beyond
Video recording of an August 6, 2020, discussion on telehealth policies and impacts in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and key considerations for the future of telehealth policy. Examines rural topics throughout, including access to broadband and using RHCs and FQHCs as originating site providers for telehealth services. Transcript available by clicking the dots above the video description, then selecting Show transcript.
Date: 08/2020
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: House Ways and Means Committee
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Rural-Urban Mental Health Disparities in the United States During COVID-19
Explores rural and urban mental health access during the COVID-19 pandemic. Discusses the expanded use of telehealth, the lack of broadband access, and mental health provider shortages in rural areas.
Author(s): Nicole M. Summers-Gabr
Citation: Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 12(S1), S222-S224
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
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The ReConnect Broadband Pilot Program
Highlights a program that provides loan and grant funding to expand rural access to broadband service. Details the program's eligibility requirements and compares it to other broadband programs offered by the Rural Utilities Service (RUS).
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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Evidence Briefing: Tackling the Digital Divide & Telehealth Access for Low-Income Californians
Recording of a July 28, 2020 briefing that features a panel of health care providers discussing strategies to improve access to broadband internet and telehealth services in California. Offers perspectives from a Federally Qualified Health Center and a VA health system that serve rural California residents. Transcript available by clicking the dots above the Subscribe tab, then selecting Open Transcript.
Date: 07/2020
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: California Initiative for Health Equity and Action
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Rural Matters - Coronavirus and the Navajo Nation
Presents a first-hand account of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Navajo Nation. Discusses the social and environmental factors that contribute to the spread of the virus.
Author(s): Heather Kovich
Citation: New England Journal of Medicine, 383, 105-107
Date: 07/2020
Type: Document
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Left Out: Barriers to Health Equity for Rural and Underserved Communities
Summarizes responses to a Request for Information from the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee's Rural and Underserved Communities Health Task Force. Describes factors contributing to healthcare challenges in rural areas, including demographics, social and structural determinants of health, insurance coverage, access to care, and workforce shortages. Highlights promising models of healthcare delivery in rural areas. Includes state-by-state health equity maps.
Additional links: State and Territory Health Equity Maps, Summary
Date: 07/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: House Ways and Means Committee
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5G Deployment: FCC Needs Comprehensive Strategic Planning to Guide Its Efforts
Provides an overview of wireless networks and the development and deployment of 5G networks. Describes challenges of expanding networks to rural and low-income communities. Discusses the potential impact of 5G deployment on the digital divide between rural and urban areas. Offers recommendations regarding performance goals and mitigating the digital divide.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 06/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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American Broadband Initiative Progress Report June 2020
Provides an overview of federal agency actions taken to increase broadband access and private-sector investments in broadband in response to the American Broadband Initiative's 2019 Milestones Report. Documents actions taken by federal agencies to promote broadband access since February 2019 across three categories: streamlining federal permitting, leveraging federal assets, and federal funding.
Date: 06/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Telecommunications and Information Administration
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Broadband: Observations on Past and Ongoing Efforts to Expand Access and Improve Mapping Data
Reviews previous and ongoing industry and federal government investments in the deployment of broadband in the United States. Compares the availability of fixed broadband services in urban, rural, and tribal areas. Describes federal programs to expand and support broadband access, as well as proposed reforms for mapping broadband deployment data.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 06/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Finding Innovation and Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic: How Rural Health Organizations Are Adapting Their Program Strategies
Summarizes a series of virtual peer learning sessions in response to COVID-19 for current Rural Health Care Services Outreach Program, Rural Health Network Development, Small Healthcare Provider Quality Improvement, and Delta States Rural Development Network program grantees. Provides an overview of common themes that emerged from the sessions. Discusses the challenges and innovations made to implement rural health and public programs across six areas: community health workers, data collection and evaluation, virtual trainings, peer support services and recovery supports, telehealth utilization, and schools.
Additional links: Adaptive Strategies for Rural Grantees Amid COVID-19: Adjusting Approaches to Data Collection and Utilization, Adaptive Strategies for Rural Grantees Amid COVID-19: Peer Support and Recovery Services in a Virtual Environment, Adaptive Strategies for Rural Grantees Amid COVID-19: Strategies for Supporting Community by Maintaining Work With Schools, Adaptive Strategies for Rural Grantees Amid COVID-19: Taking Community Health Worker Practice Virtual, Adaptive Strategies for Rural Grantees Amid COVID-19: Using Telehealth in New and Improved Ways to Meet Emerging Needs, Guide for Planning and Hosting an Effective Virtual Meeting/Training Event
Author(s): Tanisa Adimu, John Butts, Coleman Tanner, et al.
Date: 05/2020
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Georgia Health Policy Center
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