by SARAH THOMACK
St. Joseph Post
Governor Mike Parson and U.S. Senator Roy Blunt got an update on broadband expansion in northwest Missouri during a visit to Savannah on Wednesday.
Parson and Blunt met with United Fiber and United Electric Cooperative officials. Parson says broadband expansion is an important issue in the state and a priority of his.
“I know Senator Blunt, from day one, on the federal level, has did some incredible things to help financing for the state of Missouri… but one of the reasons I wanted to be here today is to see what impact that is having, prior to the pandemic and then where are we at today,” Parson says.
Parson says the coronavirus made it evident that the state needs to be on a faster track to strengthen broadband for students, small businesses and farmers.
“One of the things, when I first become governor, is I realized that not all schools in Missouri have broadband. So if you can imagine a kid going to school today trying to compete with other resources at other schools or a mom-and-pop business or a farmer out there that’s got to compete on a global market, a world market or a state market, how important this is," Parson says. "I think we just have to continue to make this a priority, along with many other parts of the infrastructure program. That’s what really makes us successful in this state.”
Senator Blunt says in recent months, many more people have realized the importance of high-speed broadband services for virtual learning and the advantage of telehealth.
“We’ve seen a big change in this area in a very short period of time, I think the federal government is probably finally wound up where I thought we should be for the last five or six years which is embracing telehealth and telebehavioral health,” Blunt says. “Behavioral health, even more distant, often, than the doctor you're going to for your physical health problems, but to be able to get on a screen and be able to talk to somebody who’s helping you through a behavioral health or mental health problem is incredibly valuable.”
Parson's visit to Savannah was part of several stops the governor is making across the state this week. On Thursday, Parson will hold a press conference at Washington University School of Medicine to discuss the new saliva-based COVID-19 test recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).