The COVID-19 pandemic and accompanying relaxation of regulatory barriers has occasioned an explosion in telemedicine use, vaulting it to the center of health care delivery.
Op-eds
All of America’s Kids Should Have Access to the Virtual Classroom
The “homework gap” affects about 12 million children of school age across the country who lack broadband connectivity in their homes. The culprit is a combination of a lack of access to a broadband connection (especially for those in rural areas) and a lack of adoption (primarily among low-income families in more urban and suburban areas).
School’s Out: A COVID-19 Lesson
We’re progressing from a homework gap to a full-on education gap.
Prioritize quality internet connections in order for students to learn remotely
We are living in an age when we can no longer allow geographical barriers and insufficient safety nets to stop us from bringing high-speed internet to every American.
Congress can narrow the healthcare gap by closing the digital divide
As promising as telemedicine is for rural medicine, obtaining a high-speed internet connection for telehealth is an impossibility for tens of millions of rural residents who are on the wrong side of a seemingly intractable digital divide.
Boucher LTE for The Hill: The internet is easing the pandemic’s strain on society
It’s no secret that the pandemic is putting a strain on all segments of our society – but we’re pushing forward. That resilience is largely possible thanks to one of human-kind’s greatest and most complex inventions: the internet.
Bruce Mehlman: Economic recovery from coronavirus demands more available, affordable and accessible broadband
As policymakers focus on helping Americans rebuild our economy and our lives, they can take meaningful steps to close the digital divides and accelerate our comeback by making broadband more available, affordable, accessible and American.
Let’s Learn From Europe’s Broadband Mistake
IIA Honorary Chairman Rick Boucher, founder of the House Internet Caucus, says the US’s better internet performance during the coronavirus pandemic is attributable to sustained private investment that has been encouraged by a light-touch regulatory regime for broadband.
Telemedicine Rules Should Be Permanently Eased
Medicare and state telemedicine restrictions have been eased during the coronavirus pandemic, and these changes need to be made permanent, writes IIA Honorary Chairman Rick Boucher. Doctors can see more patients and get fairly paid for it, and patients can use smart phones and personal computers to get needed medical advice.
Congress Punished Rural TV Viewers, and We Will Pay the Price During the Pandemic
For us newly minted shut-ins, TV has become even more of a lifeline as we seek out news on the virus … and a respite from it. For thousands of rural Americans, that lifeline may soon be cut off, leaving their households blind, right at the time we need to see what is going on.
Coronavirus Makes It Clear: We Need to Digitally Empower More Women
With our lives upended by COVID-19, it’s increasingly clear that government, industry and NGO leaders all need to play a role in supporting the transition of millions of women into more tech-centered jobs, and every woman in this country needs access to broadband.
How COVID-19 Is A Study In Why We Need Broadband For All
Realizing the measures necessary to stop the coronavirus has made IIA Co-Chair Kim Keenan even more resolved to get the word out that everyone needs access to broadband, regardless of where they live, how much money they have or the color of their skin.