Late last month, as part of its 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act (the “Act”), Congress appropriated $249,950,000 in additional funds to the highly demanded COVID-19 Telehealth Program (the “Program”) established by the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”). The FCC is seeking public comment, with the initial comment period ending on January 19, 2021, on how to implement and administer the second round of applications to the Program (“Round 2”). Once the comment period is closed and the FCC has evaluated all comments, the FCC will announce the rules, process and application filing window for Round 2 applications.
Background
In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, the FCC first announced the inception of its Program on April 2, 2020, funded by a $200 million appropriation in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”). As noted in our prior alerts (here and here), the Program provided eligible health care providers with 100 percent of the costs, up to $1 million per applicant, of the telecommunications, information services and connected devices (i.e., remote monitoring devices, such as pulse-ox, BP monitoring device, but only if they were connected) necessary to provide remote telehealth services. Interest in the Program was substantial, and the FCC quickly exhausted the initially appropriated $200 million in funding.
Expansion of the Program
Building on the initial success of the Program, Congress appropriated an additional $249,950,000 in funding to the Program and directed the FCC to issue a Public Notice seeking public comment on, among other things: (1) metrics for evaluation of the Program; and (2) how the FCC should handle applications submitted during the initial round of applications that did not receive funding or did not receive the full $1M of funding (“Round 1 Applications”).
To that end, on January 6, 2021, the FCC issued the requested Public Notice, seeking public comment on the items noted above, as well as, among other things: (1) how to prioritize funding (i.e., whether to target the hardest-hit geographic areas, specific patient populations, health system under pre-existing strain, etc.); and (2) potential improvements to the Program. Interested parties have until January 19, 2021 to comment. Comments can be submitted here in the FCC’s Electronic Comment Filing System. Once the comment period is concluded the FCC will issue additional guidance outlining the rules, process and timeline for Round 2 applications.
In the Act, Congress further instructed the FCC to ensure that, in administering Round 2: (1) at least one health care provider in each state is awarded funding; (2) Round 1 applicants are able to amend or update their Round 1 Application; (3) if possible, the FCC provides applicants with an update on the status of the review of their application, if requested; and (4) if the FCC elects to deny an application, it provides the applicant with a rationale for the denial, as well as an opportunity to provide supplemental information to address the rationale for the denial.
Thus, although we do not have the applicable rules for Round 2 at this time, we know that the FCC will accept new applications, as well as allow Round 1 Applications to be re-submitted in some form.
Practical Takeaways
- Additional funds will be available in the FCC’s COVID-19 Telehealth Program, but the timing for submission of applications has yet to be announced.
- Applicants who submitted an application in Round 1, but did not receive funding are eligible to submit an application for Round 2 funding. It is not yet clear whether Round 1 applicants who received funding would be eligible to submit a second application.
For more information on the COVID-19 Telehealth Program, the eligibility of certain equipment or services, or for assistance in submitting applications, invoices or Post-Program Reports, please contact:
- Kiersten Kamman at (317) 977-1481 or kkamman@wp.hallrender.com;
- Michael Batt at (317) 977-1417 or mbatt@wp.hallrender.com.
- Emily Beukema at (248) 457-7882 or ebeukema@wp.hallrender.com; or
- Your primary Hall Render contact.
- Michael Latcha at (269) 207-6382 or mlatcha@hallrenderAS.com.
Hall Render blog posts and articles are intended for informational purposes only. For ethical reasons, Hall Render attorneys cannot—outside of an attorney-client relationship—answer specific questions that would be legal advice.
