FCC Focuses on Maternal Health in Updated Broadband Health Mapping Tool
The FCC updated its Mapping Broadband Health in America tool to allow for visualization of more detailed data at the intersection of broadband access and health problems such as opioid abuse, cancer, chronic disease and several conditions affecting maternal health, said a public notice, fact sheet and news release Friday. The latest update “provides a crucial lens into the complex factors affecting maternal health” and is aimed at “empowering communities and policymakers to take action to improve the health and well-being of reproductive age and pregnant women across the country."
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The Mapping Broadband Health in America platform was released in 2016 and has been periodically updated to include more health data and functionality. It was updated in 2013 to include maternal health metrics, opioid mortality and prescription rate data in accordance with congressional passage of the Data Mapping to Save Moms’ Lives Act (see 2306200074). The 2024 update expands the available broadband connectivity data and “introduces new maternal health, opioids, chronic disease, and social determinants of health metrics which underlie many of the public health crises facing our nation,” Friday’s public notice said.
The tool “allows users to identify areas where a lack of broadband access may exacerbate existing maternal health disparities and hinder access to vital telehealth services, prenatal care, and health information,” the fact sheet said. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel told lawmakers in October that the Mapping Broadband Health in America platform would receive this update in November. The FCC didn’t comment on why the update was delayed.
The platform will also now categorize counties based on their health needs and broadband connectivity. A total of 82.9 million Americans live in counties that face below-average access to primary care physicians and rural fixed broadband connections, according to data from the updated platform included in the public notice. The PN refers to these areas as “Double Burden” counties. In addition, the platform shows 18.2% of Americans -- 60.7 million people -- “live in areas with greater shortages of mental health providers and where at least one out of every ten households does not own a digital device.” And nearly 7 million Americans reside in “maternity care deserts,” which the PN defines as areas without a "hospital, birthing center, or providers offering obstetric care—and below average rural fixed broadband access.”
The updated mapping platform could be a valuable tool “in the hands of people who can use it at the health district level” to lobby for retention of relaxed COVID-19-era regulations on telehealth and drive resource investment in double-burdened counties, said Dr. Christian Chisholm, a physician at the University of Virginia's UVA Health’s Maternal and Fetal Medicine Clinic. Chisholm participated in FCC proceedings on the mapping platform in 2023. “The advancements that I've seen today compared to what we had to look at a year ago are really going to help with our understanding of where the needs are, where the problems exist, and how we can target services to try to improve those outcomes,” he added.
The FCC’s mapping can highlight “different opportunities" for CTA member-companies in the health space, said CTA Senior Director Regulatory Affairs Rachel Nemeth. Broadband connectivity is required to make those opportunities possible, she said.
The FCC’s Connect2Health Task Force is seeking feedback on additional datasets and functionality that should be included in the mapping platform, the PN said. “To further a cross-sector, cross-disciplinary dialogue on the intersection of broadband connectivity and health, stakeholders are also encouraged to share sample maps of interest and key findings developed from the platform.”