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Sara Raza, a clinical fellow at the Harvard Law School Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation, shared findings of her research into state digital equity plans at Broadband Communities Summit West.
Here’s where some plans are excelling, and others are falling short.
By: Brad Randall, Broadband Communities
Digital access can improve health outcomes, according to Sara Raza, a clinical fellow at the Harvard Law School Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation.
Raza, who spoke at Broadband Communities Summit West in October, shared some of her findings after examining the digital equity plans of 20 states as part of a larger 50-state survey.
The survey, according to Raza, examined how states manage stakeholder healthcare involvement and engagement in their digital equity plans.
State digital equity plans, which have been required from states, have been afforded billions of dollars in funding under the Digital Equity Act for implementation.
“As a first priority, the state should see whether covered populations have access to available and affordable high-speed internet for accessing healthcare services, such as telehealth,” Raza said. “And this should be available, not just in hospitals or rural health clinics, but for every individual in their homes.”
She said another key component of what her research looked for was whether all covered populations will have access to “reliable and good quality devices for accessing care from their homes.”
Raza described the need for digital skills training and access to tech support as necessary pillars for digital healthcare.
She said some common and encouraging themes she observed across all plans included an emphasis on digital skills training for covered populations.
“These covered populations are everyone,” she said. “Including low-income individuals, veterans, rural populations, individuals with disabilities, incarcerated individuals.”
Less common but encouraging themes
Some less common but encouraging themes Raza identified showed up in digital equity plans for Massachusetts and California.
She said digital skills training programs in California have trained thousands of learners and provided them skills to access online job boards, enroll in benefits, and gain access to healthcare resources.
“There’s also a huge emphasis on the role of community anchor institutions, especially using libraries as vital hubs for connectivity,” Raza said.
Raza additionally highlighted a development from Massachusetts, where the establishment of a digital literacy question on health forms has been proposed, allowing organizations to then address needs indicated on forms submitted.
Missed opportunities?
As for opportunities that other states can leverage, Raza had more to say.
In her presentation, Raza mentioned four states — North Dakota, Alabama, Mississippi, and South Dakota — that she believes are missing an opportunity.
“The issue here is that these states are laser focused on their uptake, on their utilization of telehealth services,” she said. “While alone, this is not a problem it, on its own, is not sufficient.”
She said the aforementioned states all have apps, platforms, and stakeholders that are involved and working hard to increase uptake of telehealth services and improve access to traditional health insurance.
“However, they do not draw that connection between health and social care,” Raza said. “They do talk about social services, but do not particularly highlight how increased access to social services, social care, will improve health outcomes.”
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