Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai has circulated a draft order to increase funding for the Rural Health Care Program. The program’s current annual funding cap is $400 million. The Chairman’s order would increase the annual cap to $571 million. Recently, demand for funding under the program has outpaced the budget, creating uncertainty for patients, health care providers and communications companies. The order would apply the increased cap to the current funding year and enable rural health care providers to continue offering telemedicine services.
