Press Releases and Articles
Apr 22 2010
Corker Invites UT Health Science Center Telehealth Department Head to Testify
Aging Committee Hearing to Examine FCC Broadband Plan's Focus on Health IT and Telehealth Services
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Corker, R-Tenn., ranking member of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, has invited Richard Kuebler, the department head of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center Telehealth Program, to testify today at an Aging Committee hearing, Thursday, April 22, examining provisions of the Federal Communication Commission's (FCC's) National Broadband Plan that address expansion of health information technology and telehealth services, including home health monitoring for senior citizens.
UTHSC's Telehealth Program, based in Memphis, connects rural locations with specialists and educators in major metropolitan areas using broadband technology. The program's stated mission is "to provide access to specialty medical services to underserved populations and to develop and implement programs to improve access to health education for families and clinicians."
Mid-South residents are frequently referred to cities for specialty health care services; however, these referrals often require lengthy and costly travel and potentially harmful delays in receiving needed treatment. The interactive telehealth network permits health care professionals to see and speak in real time with clinicians, patients and families in rural or isolated communities.
The hearing, entitled, "Aging in Place: The National Broadband Plan and Bringing Health Care Technology Home," will consider the benefits of telehealth services to enhance hospital and nursing care as well as examine barriers to expanding telehealth, such as connectivity costs and reimbursement rates.
Other witnesses testifying at the hearing, to be chaired by Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., include: Dr. Mohit Kaushal, Digital Healthcare Director FCC Omnibus Broadband Initiative; Dr. Farzad Mostashari, Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC); Eric Dishman, Fellow, Continua Health Alliance; and Dr. Robin A. Felder, Director of Medical Automation Research Center, University of Virginia.
To watch a live webcast of the hearing and to access full committee testimony, visit: http://aging.senate.gov/
WHO: U.S. Senator Bob Corker, R-Tenn., Ranking Member, U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging
Richard Kuebler, Department Head, University of Tennessee Health Science Center Telehealth Program
WHAT: U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging Hearing
"Aging in Place: The National Broadband Plan and Bringing Health Care Technology Home"
WHEN: Thursday, April 22, 2010
2:00 p.m. ET (1:00 p.m. CT)
WHERE: U.S. Senate Dirksen Office Building
Room 562
Washington, D.C., 20510
###
UTHSC's Telehealth Program, based in Memphis, connects rural locations with specialists and educators in major metropolitan areas using broadband technology. The program's stated mission is "to provide access to specialty medical services to underserved populations and to develop and implement programs to improve access to health education for families and clinicians."
Mid-South residents are frequently referred to cities for specialty health care services; however, these referrals often require lengthy and costly travel and potentially harmful delays in receiving needed treatment. The interactive telehealth network permits health care professionals to see and speak in real time with clinicians, patients and families in rural or isolated communities.
The hearing, entitled, "Aging in Place: The National Broadband Plan and Bringing Health Care Technology Home," will consider the benefits of telehealth services to enhance hospital and nursing care as well as examine barriers to expanding telehealth, such as connectivity costs and reimbursement rates.
Other witnesses testifying at the hearing, to be chaired by Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., include: Dr. Mohit Kaushal, Digital Healthcare Director FCC Omnibus Broadband Initiative; Dr. Farzad Mostashari, Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC); Eric Dishman, Fellow, Continua Health Alliance; and Dr. Robin A. Felder, Director of Medical Automation Research Center, University of Virginia.
To watch a live webcast of the hearing and to access full committee testimony, visit: http://aging.senate.gov/
WHO: U.S. Senator Bob Corker, R-Tenn., Ranking Member, U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging
Richard Kuebler, Department Head, University of Tennessee Health Science Center Telehealth Program
WHAT: U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging Hearing
"Aging in Place: The National Broadband Plan and Bringing Health Care Technology Home"
WHEN: Thursday, April 22, 2010
2:00 p.m. ET (1:00 p.m. CT)
WHERE: U.S. Senate Dirksen Office Building
Room 562
Washington, D.C., 20510
###