Funding Will Expand Use of Telehealth to Integrate Mental and Behavioral Health into Pediatric Primary Care.
May 20 - Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), announced the availability of $14.2 million from the American Rescue Plan to expand pediatric mental health care access by integrating telehealth services into pediatric primary care.
The funding will expand Pediatric Mental Health Care Access (PMHCA) projects into new states and geographic areas nationwide, including tribal areas.
Read the release.
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61% Have Gone to Racial and Ethnic Minorities.
May 19 - The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Health Center Program-funded health centers and Health Center Program look-alikes (LALs) have administered more than 10 million COVID-19 vaccine doses nationwide—with 61% provided to racial and ethnic minorities. Community health centers, which largely serve the nation’s underserved and most vulnerable communities, have been central to President Biden's commitment to ensuring equity and access in the COVID-19 response and vaccination program.
Read the release.
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As part of President Biden's commitment to ensure the nation's underserved communities and those disproportionately affected by COVID-19 are equitably vaccinated, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), is coordinating efforts to support COVID-19 vaccination of migratory and seasonal agricultural workers including workers in the food sector.
These workers, including workers in the food sector, are often at heightened risk of COVID-19 infection as a result of multiple common factors, such as living in congregate housing, using shared transportation, and close working conditions.
Read the release.
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May 11 – In recognition of National Women’s Health Week, and thanks to the American Rescue Plan, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), awarded approximately $40 million in emergency home visiting funds to states, territories, and the District of Columbia to support children and families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program supports the delivery of coordinated and comprehensive, high quality, voluntary, evidence-based home visiting services to children and families living in communities at risk for poor maternal and child health outcomes.
These funds will be used to provide services and emergency supplies, such as diapers, food, water, and hand sanitizer. Families who cannot access home visiting services due to the pandemic will be provided technology to participate in virtual home visits. Funds will also be used to train home visitors on emergency preparedness and response planning for families and on how to safely conduct virtual intimate partner violence screenings.
Read the release.
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The upcoming May 21 GetVax Digital Day of Action is one of the efforts from the We Can Do This campaign at the Department of Health and Human Services. This public education campaign is focused on increasing vaccine confidence and helping communities get access to the COVID-19 vaccines.
View the Social Media Toolkit.
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 Applicants have more time to apply to the Nurse Corps Scholarship Program with the new May 26 deadline. Are you pursuing an NP degree in psychiatric mental health? An APRN or RN degree in women’s health or certified nurse midwifery? Or are you a CNA, home health aide, medical assistant, or LPN working towards your RN degree? You may be eligible for an award. The Nurse Corps Scholarship Program provides financial support to students enrolled in nursing degree programs in exchange for a commitment to serve in high-need areas across the country. We received a historic increase in funding this year under the American Rescue Plan, and Nurse Corps anticipates significant increase in the number of scholarship awards it makes.
Apply by May 26 at 7:30 p.m. ET. Find out if you qualify.
HRSA’s HWTAC Health Equity Webinar Series: Social Workers and Tele-behavioral Health Services
Join our Health Workforce Technical Assistance Center (HWTAC) for the second webinar of their health equity series today, May 20, 3-4 p.m. ET. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted access to and delivery of behavioral health services for both patients and providers. This webinar will discuss how practicing social workers transitioned to tele-behavioral health services during the pandemic. Presenters will also explore challenges, practice innovations, and ethical/equity-focused implications to increase the use of tele-behavioral health beyond the pandemic. HWTAC’s health equity series is based on the work of the Health Workforce Research Centers to help decision-makers at the federal, state, and local levels understand health workforce needs.
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 We are excited to announce the final winners in two MCHB Grand Challenges:
These awards mark the conclusion of the MCHB Grand Challenges, which kicked off in 2018. MCHB announced the winners of the two other Grand Challenges, Care Coordination for Children with Special Health Care Needs and Addressing Opioid Use Disorder in Pregnant and New Moms, in December 2020.
We selected the Phase 1 winners of the Promoting Pediatric Primary Prevention (P4) Challenge. We received more than 240 submissions from teams across the nation. The panel of Expert Advisors and Federal Judges chose 50 Phase 1 Winners to receive a $10,000 cash prize and move forward to Phase 2 of the Challenge. In Phase 2, competitors will deploy their proposed innovations Up to 20 of the Phase 1 winners will then win a $25,000 cash prize.
We launched the P4 Challenge in December 2020 in response to CDC data demonstrating that fewer children received vaccinations this year compared to last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These declines might leave young children and communities vulnerable to vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles.
Learn more about our P4 Challenge.
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On May 4, the National Academy of Medicine with support from HRSA’s Bureau of Primary Health Care and Bureau of Health Workforce released Implementing High-Quality Primary Care: Rebuilding the Foundation of Health Care. The report puts forth an evidence-based plan to implement high-quality primary care in the United States with recommendations and scalable solutions that balance national needs with adaptations to meet local needs.
Read the report.
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More than twenty percent of adults experience a behavioral health disorder every year in the United States. Behavioral health disorders can be challenging to identify, screen for and treat, especially in rural communities, and the supply of behavioral health providers often cannot meet the demand for services.
This webinar will highlight state policy options for legislators aiming to increase access to rural behavioral health services including opportunities to:
- improve crisis hotlines
- increase access to opioid use disorder treatment and overdose prevention
- leverage emerging health professionals to address workforce gaps
- consider scope of practice and licensing policies for behavioral health professionals
This National Conference of State Legislatures webinar is supported by a cooperative agreement with HRSA. Register to participate.
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As states work to ensure equitable distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine, gaps remain in providing it to the nation’s most vulnerable. Many states use pharmacists as educators, facilitators, and administrators of the COVID-19 vaccine to increase its availability and accessibility across the United States, especially for those living in rural and underserved areas. The National Conference of State Legislature (NCSL) recently relaunched its Scope of Practice Policy website, creating a more user-friendly experience with an updated look. New content on the site now includes pharmacists’ authority to administer the COVID-19 vaccines, as well as additional information on pharmacists’ scope of practice.
The National Conference of State Legislature’s Scope of Practice Policy website and related blog post are supported by a cooperative agreement with HRSA.
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 On May 19, our HIV/AIDS Bureau (HAB) recognized National Hepatitis Testing Day, which is recognized each year during Hepatitis Awareness Month. We raised awareness about the impact of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) among people with HIV and encouraged those with HIV to get tested for HCV. People with HIV are disproportionately affected by both the hepatitis B virus and HCV. Our Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program has a number of resources to help health care providers treating people who have or are at risk for HIV/HCV coinfection, including the National HIV/HCV Coinfection Curriculum.
In honor of National HIV Long-Term Survivor Day, we invite all recipients, stakeholder organizations, and federal partners to participate in a HRSA-initiated Twitter thread. The thread begins Tuesday, June 1, and continues through Saturday, June 5, which is both National HIV Long-Term Survivor Day as well as the 40th anniversary of when the first five cases of what later became known as AIDS were officially reported. Over five days, @HRSAgov will send five messages tied together by their connection to National HIV Long-Term Survivor Day. Please consider jumping on our Twitter thread to post your own content that focuses on your program’s goals/accomplishments/experiences and use the hashtag #HRSAHonorsHIVSurvivors.
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The Healthy Grants Workshop offers multiple sessions that will help you successfully manage your HRSA award. There’s no cost to attend and you can attend as many sessions as you would like.
We will hold a new session every two weeks through August 24. Each session includes two to three topics, from grants policies, financial monitoring, and grant budgeting, to Prior Approvals, an Electronic Handbooks overview, and more.
Next session: June 1, 1-3:30 p.m. ET.
Register to attend one or more of the webinars.
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 The Office of Minority Health (OMH) has issued a notice to solicit applications to fund projects that test interventions to identify family-centered factors that promote self-management and prevention of Type 2 diabetes among racial and ethnic minority and disadvantaged families who have a family member(s) aged 12 and older with Type 2 diabetes.
For the purposes of this notice, “family” also includes persons who may live in the same household as the individual with Type 2 diabetes.
Application Due Date: July 13, 6 p.m. ET. Apply today.
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