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More Opportunities for Distance Learning and Telemedicine Coming to Georgia

Name
Deborah Brumfield
Phone
City
ATHENS
Release Date

NEWS RELEASE

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced a significant expansion of access to high-speed internet, health care and educational services for millions of rural Americans nationwide.

In the release, there are four Georgia recipients of Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant awards; Here are the details:

   Congressional District    | Recipient |  Grant Amount | Description

Sanford D. Bishop Jr. (02), Marjorie Taylor Greene (14)

Crisp Regional Hospital, Inc.

$56,574

This Rural Development investment will be used to improve medical services to students, and significantly improve the overall health of the community by addressing long-term physical, mental, and behavioral health issues in the Crisp County School District. Through the Crisp Regional in Schools Program project, Crisp Regional Hospital will place telemedicine carts in the county's schools and provide needed telemedicine services to the students at those schools. This proposal will greatly reduce the burdens (costs, transportation and time) on these students and families seeking more direct and previously inaccessible health care services by meeting students where they are, and in the most convenient manner possible. The total population impacted will be an estimated 3,800 students annually.

Andrew Clyde (09),

Jody Hice (10)

Foothills Education Center, Inc.

$86,475

This Rural Development investment will be used to combat the shortage of health professionals in rural counties. The Foothills Education Charter High School plans to launch a Telehealth Outreach Program to remove barriers to access and increase the availability of health, mental health, and substance abuse care to over 700 students in nine different rural school locations throughout Northeast Georgia. The Telehealth Outreach Program is part of the Foothills plan to re-engage students following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sanford D. Bishop Jr. (02) Drew Ferguson (03)

New Horizons Community Service Board

$51,230

This Rural Development investment will be used to provide a telemedicine and distance learning network for New Horizons Behavioral Health in west central Georgia. These counties experienced a 245 percent increase in opioid-related overdose deaths from 2010 to 2017. By placing end-user equipment in Randolph, Stewart, Talbot and Harris counties and making mobile equipment available for case managers in Clay, Quitman and Chattahoochee, this Integrated Telehealth Network Project will provide approximately 55,000 residents with treatment for substance use disorders, mental health issues and chronic physical conditions such as hypertension and diabetes.

Rick Allen (12)

Wheeler County School District

$607,900

This Rural Development investment will be used to build a telemedicine and distance learning network in Wheeler County, Georgia. As one of the poorest counties in Georgia, its high poverty rate and remote location pose challenges for its citizens who seek opportunities to improve their health, further their education, and improve their quality of life. Substance abuse is on the rise and its effects are evident in the increase of students with special needs entering Wheeler County Schools. This network will provide mental health services and substance abuse education and counseling to 900 Wheeler County District students, as well as inmates and former inmates at the Wheeler County Law Enforcement Office and Center, for a total population served of approximately 2,800. Though the predominate focus of this grant will be on telemedicine, distance learning activities will provide equitable access to high-quality education and mental health services, improved school readiness, and increased awareness of career and education opportunities for all Wheeler County School District students.