Is your organization a Community Health Center, Community Mental Health Center, Skilled Nursing Facility, Post-Secondary Learning Institution, Local Health Department, Rural Health Clinic, Non-profit Hospital, or For-profit Rural Hospital with a dedicated Emergency Room?
If so, then your organization may be eligible to obtain funds for your expenses related to Internet connectivity (broadband) and telecommunications from the FCC’s Healthcare Connect Fund.
What is the Healthcare Connect Fund?
The Healthcare Connect Fund provides reimbursements and, in some cases, advanced payments for broadband and telecommunication expenses for those who are eligible and submit proper requests. The Healthcare Connect Fund isn’t a loan or a grant application. The fund improves rural healthcare delivery that is based on high-speed Internet connectivity.
How do eligible organizations participate in the Healthcare Connect Fund?
There are usually one to two annual funding application windows for eligible healthcare provider types. During that time, the FCC-approved CommunityHealth IT Consortium (CRN# 38493) submits the eligibility documents to the FCC on behalf of the healthcare organizations for which it recoups funds.
Once the healthcare organization is officially deemed eligible, CommHIT then recoups funds for it. CommHIT ensures that the funds are provided to your organization by tracking the process and keeping up with the “paperwork” for you. To help the organization’s financial department coordinate the recouped funds, CommHIT gives each organization a heads up when the funds will show up on a given invoice.
How is eligibility determined?
In 1996, Congress directed the Commission to provide support to qualifying rural healthcare providers for critical communications services and limited the types of eligible healthcare providers to those listed in section 254(h)(7)(B). SNFs were not previously listed in the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Effective Jan 1, 2017, SNFs are on the list of eligible healthcare providers.
How does my organization start the process?
To initiate the FCC’s official eligibility determination, three brief agreements must be signed by organizations that want to receive reimbursements. CommHIT will help answer any questions that your legal team will have about the agreements and can start helping you through the Healthcare Connect Fund Program process as soon as the agreements are signed.
The three agreements are:
- USAC-approved Letter of Agency* (required by FCC for us to start process to get you broadband/telecom reimbursements for you)
- Third party USAC-approved authorization (required by FCC for us to start process to get you broadband/telecom reimbursements for you; it allows us to communicate with your broadband and telecom providers to get the supporting documentation needed for your application to the FCC Program)
- Consortium Agreement (short agreement with our team that explains what the Consortium does for you)
* The USAC-approved Letter of Agency requires that each of your sites are listed (USAC is the company that the FCC commissioned to administer this federal funding program.) CommHIT can help you develop that list.
CommHIT is happy to set-up a time where we can go through a brief presentation with you and your colleagues to explain the full program.
Contact Gwen.Garris@CommunityHealthIT.org for more information.