Staying Connected During the Pandemic

COVID-19 has certainly affected all of our lives. To slow the spread of this virus, we have been asked to go without many things: sporting and entertainment events, family functions, celebrations, and even congregating for worship services. While this situation is far from ideal, I am thankful we have technology to bridge the gap and keep us connected.

I miss being able to travel the vast Third District and meet with constituents all over Nebraska – one of my favorite parts of my job. Though Congress may only be meeting in Washington to vote on COVID-19 relief, it does not mean Congress isn't working. I am meeting daily by phone and video conference with constituents and colleagues to ensure Nebraskans' concerns are addressed.

Through this technology, I am able to connect with school groups, stakeholders, small business owners, local and state officials. After passing major legislation for COVID-19 relief, I have also been hosting webinars for Nebraskans to speak directly with federal agencies to ensure they can access available assistance. Although I am working from my home in Gering, my daily schedule looks very similar to a typical day in Washington or travelling the district. My team in Nebraska and Washington are also hard at work on legislation, constituent services, and outreach from their homes.

I have also been working to ensure rural health providers can incorporate improved technology to serve patients remotely as well. Telehealth can be lifesaving and extremely convenient for patients and providers. In the CARES Act, a provision I worked to include allowed Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) to begin providing telehealth services to their Medicare patients. However, this fix inadvertently required these RHCs to do a significant amount of new paperwork and also created a reimbursement system where payment can be higher for a telehealth service than a traditional, in-person visit.

To fix this, and incentivize the use of telehealth, I introduced the Improving Telehealth for Underserved Communities Act (H.R. 6792), which would simplify the Medicare payment system for RHCs and reduce paperwork, thus allowing them to focus on the patients. It would also provide additional financial relief for independent RHCs, which operate on extremely thin margins. Rural health care providers, and the millions of patients they serve, need to be able to use all the tools at their disposal, and I am working to ensure they get them.

Nothing beats regular human interaction, and I look forward to a full return to normal. I am grateful for our health providers and all the others who continue working daily to fight this disease and ensure we have the products and services we need during this time. This unprecedented pandemic has tested our nation and state, but we know the fortitude of the American people will bring us through this.

In difficult times as these, we must always try to look on the bright side of things. I wouldn't want to spend this time in any other place than the great state of Nebraska, and it has been a blessing to share so much time with my family. There will be a day when we return to normal life, and we will all be able to go about our days as we once did, but until then, we can use technology to stay connected.