MaineHealth Award is part of $72 Million in Distance Learning and Telemedicine Infrastructure in 40 States, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $72 million in grants to help rural residents gain access to health care and educational opportunities. These investments will benefit more than 12 million rural residents nationwide. In Maine, MaineHealth will receive a grant in the amount of $999,573.
“Increasing access to telemedicine and distance learning is critical to building healthier and more resilient rural communities,” said Secretary Sonny Perdue. “Paired with our monumental effort to expand high-speed broadband access in rural America, these investments will help rural health care centers and education institutions reach more rural residents with essential services and opportunities. Under the leadership of President Trump, USDA is committed to being a strong partner to rural communities because when rural America thrives, all of America thrives.”
USDA Rural Development Maine State Director Timothy P. Hobbs said, "The Trump Administration understands the critical need for access to quality and timely healthcare in rural areas. This USDA Rural Development Distance Learning and Telemedicine grant to MaineHealth will improve patient access to cardiology specialist, reduce wait times for appointments, support patient care, and invest in the quality of life for people in rural Maine and New Hampshire communities."
Anthony Linardos, the USDA Rural Development State Director in New Hampshire added, “This investment in MaineHealth will increase and improve access to crucial medical services for many of our eastern New Hampshire residents, ensuring both their health and quality of life for generations to come.”
MaineHealth is receiving a Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant in the amount of $999,573. This Rural Development investment will be used to establish telehealth carts to provide "eConsults" to clinicians across MaineHealth's rural hospitals and practices, especially as they respond to COVID-19. Rural clinicians will use telehealth carts and peripherals to connect with tertiary care specialists, using a "toolkit" enabling full documentation and ongoing co-management and videoconferencing, all of which will eventually be embedded within the Epic Shared Electronic Health Record.
This project will increase access across MaineHealth's vast rural service area to cardiology specialty care from Maine Medical Center, the state's largest tertiary care teaching hospital. This project will drastically reduce the rural patient's wait for a cardiology appointment and the clinicians travel time. The project will increase the number of cardiology specialist visits available to rural patients located in 10 counties in Maine and Carroll County, in New Hampshire.
Under today’s announcement, USDA is funding 116 projects through the Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) grant program. The program helps health care and education institutions buy the equipment and software necessary to deploy distance-learning and telemedicine services to rural residents.
Perdue announced investments today in Alaska, Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Hampshire, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Wyoming, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
For more information on the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program, visit https://www.rd.usda.gov/programs-services/distance-learning-telemedicine-grants. Maine organizations interested in applying for Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grants can also contact Timothy Brooks at timothy.brooks@usda.gov.
USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov/me.
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