The Rural Health Care program provides funding to eligible health care providers for telecommunications services, including broadband, necessary for the provision of health care. The goal of the program is to improve the quality of health care available to patients in rural communities by ensuring that eligible health care providers have access to affordable telecommunications services.

The program provides discounts on the purchase of telecommunications services by eligible rural health care providers. Paid for by the Universal Service Fund, these discounts result in rates for service that are nearly the same as those in urban areas, where telecommunications rates typically are lower. Funding is capped at $400 million annually.

To provide broadband networks in rural areas where service is lacking, the Commission launched the Rural Health Care Pilot Program, which provides funding for up to 85 percent of the costs associated with: (1) the construction of a state or regional broadband network and the advanced telecommunications and information services provided over that network; (2) connecting to Internet 2 or National LambdaRail (NLR); and (3) connecting to the public Internet.

HEADLINES

• Public Notice (WC Docket No. 02-60). Rural Health Care Pilot Program Pennsylvania Merger: The Wireline Competition Bureau seeks comment on a request to merge two participants in the universal service Rural Health Care Pilot Program, Juniata Valley Network and Pennsylvania Mountains Healthcare Resource Development. Comments are due May 20, 2009 and reply comments are due May 27, 2009. DA 09-1018 (5/6/09) Word | Acrobat
  
  
• Order (WC Docket No. 02-60). Rural Health Care Pilot Program Texas Projects Merger: In this order, the Wireline Competition Bureau grants a request from two participants in the Rural Health Care Pilot Program, the Texas Healthcare Network (THN) and the Texas Health Information Network Collaborative (THINC), to merge their respective Pilot Program projects and designate THINC as the successor to THN’s Pilot Program project. DA 09-838 (4/16/09) Word | Acrobat
  
  
• Public Notice (WC Docket No. 02-60). Texas Healthcare Network and Texas Health Information Network Collaborative: The Wireline Competition Bureau seeks comment on a request to merge two participants in the universal service Rural Health Care Pilot Program, Texas Healthcare Network (THN) and Texas Health Information Network Collaborative (THINC). Comments are due by March 20, 2009 and reply comments are due by March 24, 2009. DA 09-578 (3/13/09) Word | Acrobat
  

• Public Notice: Comment Sought On Request To Merge Mississippi Rural Health Care Pilot Program Projects. (9/19/08) Word | Acrobat
  
  
• Public Notice (WC Docket No. 02-60). Notice of Rural Health Care Pilot Program Quarterly Report Filing Deadline: The Wireline Competition Bureau announces the July 30, 2008 filing deadline for Rural Health Care Pilot Program quarterly reports. DA 08-1751 (7/28/08) Word | Acrobat
  
  
• Public Notice (WC Docket No. 02-60). The Wireline Competition Bureau seeks comment on two Requests for Review filed by Lake Delton Urgent Care and Franciscan Skemp Prairie du Chien Clinic that seek review of decisions of USAC. USAC’s decisions reduced the applicants' Rural Health Care funding requests for Funding Year 2006. Comments on the requests are due July 10, 2008, and reply comments are due July 25, 2008. DA 08-1365 (6/10/08) Word | Acrobat
  
  
• Public Notice (WC Docket No. 02-60). In this Public Notice, the Wireline Competition Bureau seeks comment on Fort HealthCare—Fort Memorial Hospital, Fort HealthCare—Lake Mills Clinic, and Fort HealthCare—Whitewater Clinic, and Franciscan Skemp Waukon Clinic’s requests for review of decisions by the Universal Service Administrative Company. Comments on the requests are due June 30, 2008, and reply comments are due July 14, 2008. DA 08-1230 (5/30/08) Word | Acrobat
  
  
• Order on Reconsideration (WC Docket No. 02-60). In this Order on Reconsideration, the Commission grants in part a Petition for Reconsideration by the American Telemedicine Association (ATA), seeking limited reconsideration of the Commissions’ Rural Health Care Support Mechanism Second Report and Order. Specifically, the Commission grants ATA’s Petition for Reconsideration in part and extends for three years the Commission’s prior determination to grandfather those health care providers who were eligible under the Commission’s definition of “rural” prior to the Second Report and Order. FCC 08-47 (2/14/08) Word | Acrobat
  
  
• Office of Management and Budget Approves Rural Health Care Pilot Program Information Collection Requirements: DA 08-140 (1/22/08)
  Public Notice: Word | Acrobat WCB Letter to USAC on Rural Health Care Pilot Program Carry-Over of Funds.
  Letter: 1/17/08 Acrobat