Clyburn Wants Rural 'Health Safety Set' Targeting Underconnected Communities
FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn suggested a rural "health safety net" to help address obesity, a shortage of primary care physicians and other problems in communities lacking robust communications access. "Almost half of U.S. counties are 'double burden' counties, where there…
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are elevated levels of chronic disease, and low levels of broadband connectivity," she said in prepared remarks Thursday to the National Rural Health Association. "Rural counties are 10 times as likely as urban areas to be low broadband, high diabetes areas. ... Perhaps it’s time for us to evolve our thinking, grow our vision, and create a 'health safety net,' for rural America. Instead of accepting the facts as they stand today, should we shake our heads and concede that some people will always fall through the cracks? Let’s aim higher, by intentionally meeting the health needs of every single American, regardless of where they live, and let’s leverage broadband technology to do so. While connectivity may not resolve every single health challenge, it certainly has the capacity to solve most of them." The FCC is focused on rural broadband deployment through targeted subsidies, removing deployment barriers and promoting competition, she said.