October 14 – The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is announcing the availability of $100 million in American Rescue Plan (ARP) funding for state-run programs that support, recruit, and retain primary care clinicians who live and work in underserved communities. This funding represents a five-fold increase to the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) State Loan Repayment Program (SLRP), and helps improve health equity by ensuring that clinicians working in high-need communities remain in them.

HRSA’s Bureau of Health Workforce is accepting applications for these grants from all 50 states, Washington D.C., and U.S. territories. HRSA estimates that it will make up to 50 awards of up to $1 million per year, over the program’s four-year project period.

Read the release.

Our Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) is accepting applications for the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program - Implementation. FORHP plans to make awards of approximately 50 grants - of up to $1 million each - to enhance substance and opioid use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery service delivery in rural communities. 

Application Due Date: Thursday, January 13, 2022, 11:59 p.m. ET.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is seeking public comment on its draft Strategic Plan for fiscal years 2022-2026 that articulates how the Department will achieve its mission through five strategic goals. You can comment by email, fax, or mail through Sunday, November 7.  

• E-mail: HHSPlan@hhs.gov, please include the Objective Number in the subject line of your email.
• Fax: (202) 690-5882
• Mail: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Strategic Planning Team
  Attn: Strategic Plan Comments
  200 Independence Avenue, SW, Room 434E
  Washington, DC 20201

This week we released a new video, “Find a Health Center,” to increase awareness about health centers and help potential patients locate a health center near them.

Help us by sharing the video on your social media pages and with your colleagues!

October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Domestic violence and health care are closely linked. According to a survey of contacts with the National Domestic Violence Hotline, 53% of respondents reported that an abusive partner has also controlled and/or restricted access to healthcare.

Our Office of Women’s Health and Bureau of Primary Health Care are working with the Administration of Children and Families and the National Domestic Violence Hotline to address these intersections.

Learn about other HRSA intimate partner violence work or view last year’s webinar, Sheltering in Place, Intimate Partner Violence, and the Healthcare Response.

October is National Bullying Prevention month. To bring awareness to this issue, which affects 1 in 5 high school students, we participated in the HHS effort to highlight the role health care providers can play in identifying and addressing bullying. In a new public service announcement (PSA), Dr. Rachel Levine, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of Health, calls on health care providers to address and combat bullying in their communities.

Bullying can result in long-term mental and physical health problems. Helping providers intervene early and effectively is critical. Please share the PSA with relevant providers, including pediatricians, nurses, mental health professionals, and social workers.

We continue to accept applications for payment from Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) employing buprenorphine-waivered providers under the Drug Addiction Treatment Act of 2000 (DATA 2000) Waiver Training Payment Program. 

The program gives RHCs the opportunity to apply for a $3,000 payment for each eligible employed provider who attained a DATA 2000 waiver on or after January 1, 2019.  Approximately $1.5 million in program funding remains available for RHCs and will be paid on a first-come, first-served basis until funds are exhausted.

We are collaborating with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to process these applications. For more information, the program provides a video and FAQs.