Eligibility

The Telecommunications Program

1. Health care providers (HCPs) must be one of the following types of entities:
   1. Post-secondary educational institutions offering health care instructions, such as teaching hospitals and medical schools
   2. Community health centers or health centers providing health care to migrants
   3. Local health departments or agencies
   4. Community mental health centers
   5. Not-for-profit hospitals
   6. Rural health clinics
   7. Consortia of HCPs consisting of one or more of the above entities
   8. Dedicated emergency departments of rural-for-profit hospitals
2. Part-time eligible entities located in facilities that are ineligible.
3. HCPs must be a not-for-profit entity or a public entity.
4. HCPs must be located in an FCC-approved rural location.

The Healthcare Connect Fund

1. The HCP must be a public or nonprofit entity.
2. The HCP must be one of the following types of entities:
   1. Post-secondary educational institution offering health care instruction, such as teaching hospitals or medical schools
   2. Community health center or health center providing health care to migrants
   3. Local health department or agency
   4. Community mental health center
   5. Not-for-profit hospital
   6. Rural health clinic, including mobile clinics, or
   7. A dedicated emergency room of a rural for-profit hospital.

3. The HCP must be located in an FCC-approved rural location. HCPs that were deemed rural prior to July 1, 2005, and received a funding commitment from the Rural Health Care Program are considered grandfathered. Not located in a rural area? You may be eligible to apply to the Healthcare Connect Fund Program as part of a consortium.

   A consortium is two or more health care providers that choose to request support as a single entity. Non-rural eligible HCPs may receive support as part of a consortium consisting of a majority rural HCP sites. In addition, ineligible HCP sites also may participate in a consortium and take advantage of lower contract prices often associated with consortia bulk-buying, but they will not receive universal service funding support.

In addition, broadband connections associated with off-site data centers and off-site administrative offices that are used by eligible health care providers are eligible for funding.