WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today announced that the University of Iowa and Iowa Central Community College have been awarded a total of $790,350 to apply communication technologies for rural healthcare delivery. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) Grant Program. Harkin is a senior member of the Senate agriculture committee as well as the panel that funds rural development initiatives.
"Residents of all communities - both rural and urban - deserve access to quality medical care. By using new technology, we are able to provide people in rural areas with the specialty medical care that many urban residents take for granted," said Harkin. "I congratulate the University of Iowa and Iowa Central Community College for receiving this competitive funding."
The DLT Grant Program works to provide access to education, training and health care resources in rural areas. Funding is provided to increase educational opportunities and expand health care.
Details of the funding are as follows:
- Iowa Central Community College: $291,377 to provide career & technical education, special education support services, media & technology services, a variety of instructional services and professional and leadership development courses to 600 students, 266 teachers and 150 community members via an interactive distance learning videoconferencing system. Iowa counties that will benefit include : Buena Vista, Calhoun, Greene, Hamilton, Humboldt, Pocahontas, Sac, Webster, and Wright.
- University of Iowa: $498,973 to provide telemedicine videoconferencing services for Family Medicine at 40 rural sites, for Child Health Specialty Clinics at 9 rural sites and for Geriatric Outreach at 15 rural sites. Iowa counties that will benefit include : Allamakee, Appanoose, Benton, Bremer, Buchanan, Buena Vista, Cass, Carroll, Cerro Gordo, Cherokee, Clay, Clayton, Decatur, Delaware, Des Moines, Dickinson, Emmett, Fayette, Fremont, Hardin, Henry, Iowa, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Keokuk, Kossuth, Linn, Louisa, Mahaska, Marion, Montgomery, Page, Plymouth, Polk, Poweshiek, Scott, Shelby, Union, Van Buren, Washington, Wayne, Winneshiek, and Wright.
