What's New
Diabetes Action Plan Reporting Flexibility
Health centers with active diabetes action plans from 2019 Operational Site Visits and diabetes technical assistance visits are encouraged to complete the performance improvement actions. Health centers may submit quarterly action plan reports; however, submission is optional. Project Officers will follow up with health centers on diabetes action plan progress as a part of routine program monitoring.
2019 UDS Data Trends
In celebration of the release of 2019 UDS data during National Health Center Week, join HRSA for a webinar dedicated to the data. From health center growth to clinical quality performance, and including the impact of telemedicine, this session will share important data trends and interpretations.
Tuesday, August 11
1:00-2:00 p.m. ET
Register here
HRSA Fiscal and Grants Management Best Practices for Awarded Look-Alikes
BPHC and HRSA’s Office of Federal Assistance Management recently hosted a webinar highlighting key fiscal aspects to provide newly awarded look-alikes (LAL) with strategies to ensure compliance and properly manage the LAL Expanding Capacity for Coronavirus Testing (ECT) funding. View the slides or watch the recording. (Disclaimer: Persons using assistive technology may not be able to fully access information in the recording. For assistance, please email HRSA or call either 301-594-4309 or 215-861-4392.)
New Registration and Recertification Requirements and Enhancements to the 340B Office of Pharmacy Affairs Information System
HRSA has updated new covered entity registration and recertification requirements and enhancements to the 340B Office of Pharmacy Affairs Information System (340B OPAIS). These new requirements and enhancements will become effective in the registration component of 340B OPAIS beginning Saturday, August 1. Some of the requirements/enhancements will only impact certain entity types. Learn more.
Resolve Progressive Action Conditions Now
Unresolved progressive action conditions, including any conditions that were on hold in EHBs, may impact your project period length and your eligibility for future funding. We strongly encourage health centers to resolve all progressive action conditions as soon as possible, particularly those conditions in the 60-day or 30-day phase. Project Officers remain available to provide guidance in line with the Health Center Program Compliance Manual and Progressive Action Conditions Library for any health centers with questions on active conditions.
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HHS Strengthening Economic Supports for Working Families
HHS will make six awards, each up to $450,000 per year for a three-year demonstration project. Successful applicants are state, local, or tribal governments and non-profit organizations engaged in outreach for the earned income tax credit in communities at higher risk for adverse childhood experiences. The HHS Office of Minority Health created an hour-long video to assist applicants to this funding opportunity announcement. Apply by Monday, August 17.
COVID-19
Deadline Extended: Provider Relief Fund
Eligible Medicaid, CHIP and dental providers who had not yet received a payment from the $50 billion General Distribution have the opportunity to apply for COVID-related relief by Monday, August 3.
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Updated CMS Fact Sheet for Health Centers
CMS released an update to their Medicare Learning Network (MLN) fact sheet for Federally Qualified Health Centers and Rural Health Clinics during the COVID-19 public health emergency. The update includes a section on the telehealth cost-sharing waiver and examples of submitting proper Current Procedural Technology (CPT)/Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) for qualified preventive services.
HHS Telemedicine Hack
HHS Telemedicine Hack (TM Hack) is a 10-week virtual, peer-to-peer learning community to accelerate telemedicine implementation for ambulatory providers. Components of TM Hack include:
- Five teleECHO sessions.
- Five virtual “office hour” discussion panels.
- Peer-to-peer learning between sessions facilitated via virtual discussion boards.
CME/CEU credits are available at no cost to participants. The series began last week, but you can still get more information or register.
Considerations for Health Center Scope of Project and the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency
We’ve consolidated existing information about scope of project as it relates to the COVID-19 public health emergency onto a single webpage. It does not include any new guidance. Instead, it provides a single place for resources about scope of project and COVID-19.
Frequently Asked Questions
We recently updated our COVID-19 FAQ webpage, adding:
- Who can health centers contact if they are unable to obtain COVID-19 testing supplies or equipment?
We also continually update our page for coronavirus-related funding FAQs. Our COVID-19 Information for Health Centers and Partners webpage includes links to Provider Relief Fund FAQs/resources.
COVID-19 Survey Deadline is 11:59 p.m. ET TODAY
The survey you received on Friday, July 17, is due by 11:59 p.m. ET today. Questions on how to complete the survey? Check out our User Guide.
As always, we’re grateful to all of the health centers and look-alikes that complete these weekly surveys! The input is invaluable—it allows us to better understand training and TA, funding, and other health center resource needs. Using it, we can track COVID-19’s impact on health center operations, staff, and patients.
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Addressing Challenges for Youth Experiencing Homelessness During COVID
The School-Based Health Alliance, a HRSA-funded National Training and Technical Assistance Partner (NTTAP), presents a webinar about current challenges facing youth experiencing homelessness. The disconnect from health care, social, and educational environments—reduced access to support systems on which they depend—can negatively impact the youths’ development. Speakers will address those challenges and discuss connectivity to health care and school re-entry and access.
Thursday, August 6
1:00-2:00 p.m. ET
Register here
Health Center School-Based Dental Programs and COVID-19: A Listening Session
As school districts develop plans for the upcoming school year, the ability of health center school-based dental programs to deliver care is unknown. The National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA), a HRSA-funded NTTAP, presents a listening session allowing health centers to listen and discuss strategies on resuming school-based dental services and share challenges and barriers.
Monday, August 10
1:30-2:30 p.m. ET
Register here
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Many federal organizations, HRSA-funded NTTAPs, and other partners are holding COVID-19-related webinars. Our Technical Assistance Calendar lists more of them and includes descriptions and registration information.
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NIH Opportunities
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Community Interventions to Address COVID-19 Pandemic:
Grants to implement and evaluate community interventions testing the impacts of: 1) strategies to prevent COVID-19 transmission in health disparity populations and other vulnerable groups; and 2) interventions to address the adverse psychosocial, behavioral, and socioeconomic consequences of the pandemic on the health of these groups.
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The Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics for Underserved Populations (RADx-UP) Initiative:
A $500 million initiative to reduce COVID-19 associated morbidity and mortality disparities for vulnerable and underserved populations that are disproportionately affected by COVID-19.
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Digital Healthcare Interventions to Address the Secondary Health Effects Related to Social, Behavioral, and Economic Impact of COVID-19:
Supports the use of digital intervention to improve how we identify, treat, or provide services for health conditions secondary to the COVID-19 pandemic for NIH-designated health disparity populations and those with medical or social vulnerabilities (e.g., residents of chronic care facilities, community-dwelling older adults, pregnant women, homeless, incarcerated, health care staff on the front lines of pandemic, and workers in essential business operations).
Substance Use Disorder & Mental Health
Are We There Yet? Achieving Behavioral Health Integration
Strengthen your health center’s integration of behavioral health services by attending this webinar:
Thursday, July 30
2:00-3:30 p.m. ET
Subject matter experts will:
- Describe models and elements of effective behavioral health integration.
- Outline steps to become more fully integrated.
- Explain methods to measure the impact of integration.
- Identify strategies that can be used to adapt behavioral health integration to telehealth.
To register, please create an account on the HRSA Center of Excellence for Behavioral Health TA's website.
Call for Applications: Integrating Behavioral Health and Oral Health Learning Collaborative
NNOHA is seeking interested health centers to participate in a virtual learning collaborative on integrating behavioral health and oral health. The goal is to improve the overall health of health center patients by using the “User’s Guide for Implementation of Interprofessional Oral Health Core Clinical Competencies” as a framework for implementing behavioral health screenings in the dental clinic. Apply by 8:00 p.m. ET on Friday, August 14.
SAMHSA 42 CFR Part 2 Revised Rule
The 42 CFR Part 2 regulations serve to protect patient records created by federally assisted programs for the treatment of substance use disorders (SUD). Part 2 has been revised to further facilitate better coordination of care in response to the opioid epidemic while maintaining its confidentiality protections against unauthorized disclosure and use. See this fact sheet from SAMHSA to learn more.
Workforce
Deadline Extended: National Health Service Corps New Site Application Open
We’ve extended the deadline for health care facilities to apply to be approved as a National Health Service Corps (NHSC) site. Applications are now due by Tuesday, August 4.
Eligible locations include health care sites that provide outpatient, ambulatory and primary health care services (medical, dental, and behavioral health) to populations residing in high-need urban and rural areas. Additional eligible site types include facilities providing general SUD treatment, a medication-assisted treatment (MAT) program, or an opioid treatment program. Learn more about the NHSC new site application.
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Telehealth
Updated CMS Fact Sheet for Health Centers
See announcement above involving the telehealth cost-sharing waiver.
HHS Telemedicine Hack
See announcement above.
Today is World Hepatitis Day
World Hepatitis Day honors Dr. Baruch Blumberg, who discovered the hepatitis B virus (HBV) and the HBV vaccine. More than 325 million people worldwide are affected by viral hepatitis—the group of infectious diseases known as hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E that cause both acute (short-term) and chronic (long-term) liver disease.
Health centers can help reduce cases of viral hepatitis as they support vulnerable populations that are at highest risk for contracting these diseases. Primary care integration of viral hepatitis testing, vaccination, other prevention, care, and treatment can increase access and improve health outcomes for at-risk patients and patients with chronic infection.
Resources that can help your health center:
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Additional Resources
Attaining and Maintaining Patient-Centered Medical Home Recognition
Join HRSA and the National Center for Quality Assurance (NCQA) to learn about the benefits of attaining and maintaining Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) recognition. You’ll see a new video featuring Piedmont Health (a HRSA-funded health center in Chapel Hill, NC) and receive an introduction to NCQA’s new PCMH Recognition Toolkit.
Wednesday, July 29
2:30-4:00 p.m. ET
Register here
Following the video and toolkit premiere, colleagues and peers will have an opportunity to share perspectives about the value of PCMH recognition, especially during the current pandemic, and you’ll be able to ask questions.
Adopting a Population Health Strategy to Reduce Heart Disease Risk
Join HRSA for an interactive presentation and discussion with Sam Cykert, M.D., of the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chief of the Program on Health and Clinical Informatics and Director of the AHRQ-funded Heart Health NOW initiative of North Carolina. Dr. Cykert will share how to reduce cardiovascular disease risk morbidity and mortality by:
- Stratifying patients by risk.
- Setting up rapid engagement and re-engagement systems to address treatment and lifestyle.
- Adopting a system of dissemination and implementation, where small practices can thrive in our value-based environment.
- Advancing the promise of primary care and quantitatively proving its value.
He will also share data and information about COVID-19 and cardiovascular disease.
Wednesday, August 12
2:00-3:30 p.m. ET
Register here
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Undiagnosed Hypertension
Are there patients in your health center with undiagnosed hypertension, hiding in plain sight? Hypertension lacks visible symptoms, so patients may not know that they have it.
- Of the 75 million Americans who have hypertension, almost half do not have the condition under control.
- About 11 million of them don’t know their blood pressure is too high and are not receiving treatment to control it.
CDC’s Million Hearts® initiative recommends four steps to help your health center identify these patients. Watch a video and see the steps.
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Value-Based Care: A Primer for Outreach and Enabling Services Staff
Health Outreach Partners, a HRSA-funded NTTAP, created this publication on community health center traditional payment models. It introduces value-based care and incentive payments, examines different incentive-based payment models, and compares them to the current fee-for-service model community health centers have traditionally relied upon.
Top 10 Reasons to Choose PCMH Recognition
The NCQA and HRSA want you to know why PCMH recognition may be right for your health center. Here are reasons 1-3 (see last week’s issue for reasons 4-7, and the previous week’s issue for reasons 8-10):
- PCMH recognition can help health centers provide the best quality of care for patients. With the patient at the center of care, recognized centers develop streamlined workflows and adopt a team-based approach that can lead to improved quality of care, increased patient and staff satisfaction, and reduced costs.
- PCMH recognition or certification have been pursued by the majority of health centers. PCMH sites are associated with improvement across a greater number of quality and cost outcomes, compared with other sites.
- Health centers may have already adopted many PCMH processes. PCMH recognition can help your sites become more transparent and accountable by facilitating consistent tracking and reporting.
Learn more on the NCQA PCMH website.
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