America's Place in a Broadband Future

I recently read The Hill article entitled "Building a Broadband Future" by Broadband for American Co-Chairmen Michael Powell and Harold Ford, and found the article to provide several strong points.

Despite America's further progression into the Information Age (broadband technology and communications) - it seems there are many inequities in our connectedness. These inequities hamper America's place in the future of broadband.

For example, the large majority of American citizens still have paper records of their medical history and rural communities with special medical conditions lack access to needed healthcare resources.

Michael Powell and Harold Ford state that they believe Broadband for America (BfA) has a single focus: "spurring broadband deployment, improving adoption and enhancing skills and training is critical if America hopes to remain a strong, prosperous country of equal opportunity", Building a Broadband Future, The Hill. It is with this goal in mind that they have chosen to serve as honorary co-chairs of BfA.

The societal advantages of strong broadband connection to evidence their argument are overwhelming (Source: Building a Broadband Future, The Hill):

- 70% of students use the internet for their homework

- 6 in 10 Americans now go online for information for their healthcare

- Broadband can reduce hospitalization by 20% through home monitoring, bringing better healthcare at a lower cost

 - A broadband-enabled smart electricity grid could generate as much as $40 billion of economic value each year and cut carbon dioxide emissions by 480 million metric tons, saving money, energy and our environment.

- Broadband makes government work better - with easy broadband internet access, working people can more readily claim the $14 billion in unclaimed Earned Income Tax Credits on the table every year.

America is now looking to model after programs already developed in the U.S. and abroad. In order for America to secure a place in the impending broadband future, it is essential that broadband internet be accessible in all American homes to continue to promote this interconnectivity.