USDA: Bringing Health IT to Rural America
By
John Pulley
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has authorized another round of rural development grants for bringing telemedicine services to rural America.
The $30.2 million in USDA grants will fund 100 telemedicine and distance-learning programs in 34 states and one territory. Although USDA provided a full list of grantees, it was unclear how much of the money was going toward telemedicine rather than distance learning.
Telemedicine projects highlighted in an Agriculture Department news release included:
- $108,820 to the Maine Sea Coast Missionary Society to purchase video equipment for a medical exam room onboard a ship.
- $262,742 to Loring Hospital in Sac City, Iowa, for video conferencing equipment connecting the emergency room, outpatient and inpatient centers with area schools and nursing homes.
The funding is provided through the USDA Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program, which falls under the department's Rural Development Program. Last month Vilsack announced several telemedicine projects funded by the Delta Health Care Services Grant Program, which also falls under the Rural Development umbrella.