The actions taken by broadband providers to ensure the performance and reliability of their networks over the last two months have largely succeeded. However, nothing changes the simple fact that the amount of data traffic these networks have delivered has far exceeded in two months what most operators expect to deliver in a calendar year.

On March 19, 2020, Sens Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to urge the FCC to take action to ensure that all K-12 students in Minnesota have access to high-speed internet so they can continue their education while schools are closed in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

More than 18 million Americans -- about 5.6 percent of the US population -- lack access to high-speed internet, according to the Federal Communications Commission. And now that the pandemic is demanding most Americans do their jobs, complete schoolwork and access healthcar

We will close rural broadband gaps faster, and more cost-effectively, if we let every provider—and every competing technology—participate in solving the problem. We also need to address the lack of computer hardware and digital literacy challenges that contribute to low adoption rates. Any legislative initiative must attack these challenges efficiently and effectively. Poor management and weak oversight in the 2009 stimulus plan led to billions being wasted on duplicative networks in areas that already had broadband, while truly unserved communities were ignored.

The pandemic has exposed inequalities as education has moved online — work that can’t be performed at home, exposing usually lower-paid adults to greater risk; lack of access to child care and quality early learning; food insecurity; and a digital divide that prevents online learning during the crisis. Schools have stepped up to provide nutritional meals, computer equipment, Internet access and cover for essential workers, but they should not bear the burden alone.

Sens Ed Markey (D-MA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) announced that they plan to increase their request in upcoming legislation aimed at ensuring all K-12 students have adequate home internet connectivity and devices during the coronavirus pandemic. The senators previously announced their intention to introduce the Senate companion to legislation, the Emergency Educational Connections Act, recently introduced by Rep Grace Meng (D-NY) in the House.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons made phone calls and some video visits free for inmates in early April, as the COVID-19 pandemic forced a suspension of visits.

The Federal Communications Commission’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau adopted a conditional waiver to allow TerreStar to begin offering wireless medical telemetry services (WMTS) in the 1.4 GHz band. With the COVID-19 outbreak causing increased reliance on medical telemetry monitoring in hospitals and on telehealth in general, this action will help ensure that traditional health care facilities have more spectrum capacity to meet a surge of additional monitoring demands that may occur in emergencies.

The Federal Communications Commission announced that it has adopted under delegated authority a request by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for a waiver of the  FCC’s rules for unlicensed devices to permit the certification and marketing of its WiTrack system. WiTrack is a wall-mounted system that allows caregivers to remotely monitor the health and safety of patients and senior adults without physical contact.

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), awarded $20 million to increase telehealth access and infrastructure for providers and families to help prevent and respond to COVID-19.