The Federal Communications Commission is very interested in what’s going on in Sunflower County, particularly at Ruleville-based North Sunflower Medical Center.
Brendan Carr, Commissioner of the FCC, was at NSMC last Friday learning more about the hospital’s patient monitoring project and seeing what role the FCC could play in the future in rolling out this technology to other rural communities.
“Historically at the FCC, we’ve played a role in supporting broadband deployment to healthcare facilities, to connect brick and mortar facilities,” Carr told The E-T in an interview at the hospital.
Carr’s visit coincided with the joint announcement by he and U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker last week that the FCC plans to set aside $100 million for a Connected Care Pilot Program that is designed to provide support for low-income Americans, especially those living in rural areas, as well as veterans.
“The FCC has long supported the deployment of broadband to healthcare facilities, but advances in technology mean that high-tech, life-saving services are no longer limited to the confines of connected, brick-and-mortar facilities,” Carr said.
Carr said he was introduced first-hand to the technology on a visit to Mississippi back during the winter.
“I saw this firsthand when I visited Mississippi six months ago and learned about a remote patient monitoring trial that improved outcomes for diabetes patients living in the rural Mississippi Delta,” he said in a statement last week. “Since then, my office has been meeting with experts in this field, visiting rural healthcare facilities, and working to see how the FCC can support this movement towards connected care.”
Carr said he believes the FCC can play a role in telehealth initiatives moving forward.
“Given the significant cost savings and improved patient outcomes associated with connected care, we should align public policy in support of this movement in telehealth. At the FCC, we can play a constructive role by helping to support the connectivity and deployments needed to ensure that all communities get a fair shot at benefitting from new telehealth technologies,” he said. “I look forward to working with my colleagues at the FCC, federal and state partners that are active on these issues, and all stakeholders as we seek comment on establishing the Connected Care Pilot Program.”
The FCC plans to vote on budgeting the $100 million during its August meeting.
According to a release from the FCC, investments in connected care have resulted in substantial savings, particularly in the management of chronic diseases which account for over 85 percent of direct healthcare spending in the U.S.
Also, the Mississippi Delta trial resulted in nearly $700,000 in annual savings due to reductions in hospital readmissions alone. Assuming just 20 percent of Mississippi’s diabetic population enrolled in this program, Medicaid savings in the state would be $189 million per year, the release said.
