Tag Archives: SDOH

ACP – addressing the digital divide

Posted by on

“We need to advance health equity in a sustainable way – not with charity care and not performative health equity”, said Dr. Alister Martin, ED physician and CEO of A Healthier Democracy in the closing keynote at the annual NEHIMSS chapter conference last week. One of the many initiatives of A Healthier Democracy is Link Health which focuses on connecting patients to the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) to close the digital divide.

Listening to Dr. Martin last Thursday, I decided to use this week’s blog post to amplify this important initiative and help raise awareness among health IT leaders about the ACP and its importance for healthcare. As they say, timing is everything. June 14-22 is the ACP White House Week of Action and June 16 is the ACP Healthcare Day of Action.

Here’s some background on the ACP taken from the Link Health website:

COVID-19 Accelerated A Massive Shift To Telehealth.

The COVID-19 pandemic ushered in widespread acceptance of telehealth and other digital innovations in medicine and dramatically increased the use of telehealth as an intervention to reach patients.  A recent HHS study shows a 63-fold increase in Medicare telehealth utilization and 32-fold increase in behavioral health care through telehealth triggered by the pandemic.

Access To Broadband Internet Is A Social Determinant Of Health.

Despite widespread internet usage in the United States, 15–24% of Americans lack broadband internet connection, a foundational requirement for telehealth and the bevy of other services that underpin the social determinants of health. In fact, access to broadband internet has been considered a “super” social determinant of health (SDoH).

The Affordable Connectivity Program Expands Broadband Access But Needs Help From Healthcare.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law created the Affordable Connectivity Program which provides a subsidy of up to $30/month for lower-income households ($75/month for households on tribal lands) on participating internet service plans and a one-time $100 subsidy for a connected device. 51.6 million households are eligible for the ACP, yet only 25% have enrolled. 38 million more households are potentially missing out on money to pay their internet bill. Importantly, only 13% of patients with Medicaid have signed up for the ACP.

Link Health is partnering with the White House, Civic Nation, and leading healthcare organizations on the ACP Week of Action to leverage the health sector to connect patients to the ACP and close the digital divide. There are resources at this site if you are ready to be part of the action and amplify the message through your organization and in your community. Continue reading →

At the intersection of racism and healthcare

Posted by on

It has been two weeks since George Floyd was murdered by police in Minneapolis. Since then, millions of people have joined protests in major cities and small rural towns around the world to make their voices heard. They have said enough is enough, racism must end and real change is needed.

When the protests end and our national focus begins to shift, we can not go back to business as usual. The statements of support and solidarity made by so many these past two weeks must turn into action.

At the local, state, and federal level we must hold our government leaders accountable for change and exercise our right to vote for those committed to change. With the focus on police brutality, we are beginning to hear some major cities announce planned changes in policing. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has introduced his “Say Their Name” agenda to reform policing in New York state. House and Senate Democrats have introduced the Justice in Policing Act.

In recent days, we have seen many “white coat” rallies as well – White Coats for Black Lives. My social media feeds are filled with pictures and stories of hospital staff rallies – many of them organized by the residents. Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, UMass Memorial in Worcester, Massachusetts, and Henry Ford Health System in Detroit were just a few of them. And these are hospitals who saw thousands of COVID-19 patients in recent months. Truly our healthcare heroes.

In 2014, after Michael Brown was shot by police in Ferguson, we saw similar support. Students at 70 medical schools around the country organized a national white coat die-in saying it was an “important time for medical institutions to respond to the violence and race-related trauma that affect our communities and the patients we serve”. They lay down for fifteen and a half minutes. Eleven minutes to represent the number of times that Eric Garner said “I can’t breathe” as he was in a choke hold by police in New York City and four and a half minutes to represent the four and a half hours that Michael Brown’s body lay in the street after being shot by a police officer. And yet here we are in 2020.

These hospital staff rallies along with the many statements of support from hospital and health system CEOs are an important show of support but we also need action and attention to health disparities. I want to share two heartfelt CEO statements that were the most impactful for me. They are from healthcare leaders I have worked with and greatly respect. Continue reading →