What's New
Service Area Status Resources Now Available
The Service Area Status (SAS) workbook, and the slides/recording from a recent SAS webinar, are now available on our Strategic Initiatives webpage.
The SAS workbook is an Excel-based tool used to view SAS scores. SAS scores provide a quantitative way for health centers to understand the health, social, and economic status of the communities they serve. HRSA is making these resources available now to assist health centers with their needs assessment and planning efforts, and HRSA will provide additional information in the future regarding additional or targeted uses.
Deadline Reminder: Service Area Competition Applications for June 1 Starts
Service Area Competition (SAC) HRSA-22-007 applications are due in HRSA’s Electronic Handbooks on Wednesday, December 1, by 5:00 p.m. ET.
TA materials are available on the SAC TA webpage.
Now Available: 2021 Uniform Data System TA Webinar Series Recordings
Recordings and slides for the recent 2021 Uniform Data System (UDS) reporting webinar series are now available on our UDS Resources webpage. The page also includes the 2021 UDS Manual and other TA resources.
Webinars addressed how to count visits and complete clinical, financial, and operations tables in the UDS. Speakers shared strategies for successful UDS report submissions, opportunities for quality improvement, and COVID-19 impacts across measures.
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Thursday is National Rural Health Day
See what HRSA and our partners have planned for the week, including HRSA’s celebration on the day itself:
Federal Efforts to Achieve Health Equity in Rural Communities
Thursday, November 18
11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. ET
Register here
Submit Nominations to the 80% in Every Community National Achievement Awards
The National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable (NCCRT) invites health center staff to submit nominations for the 2022 80% in Every Community National Achievement Awards, a competitive recognition program that seeks to highlight colorectal cancer screening success stories. Health centers are among past honorees—even a grand prize winner! NCCRT will accept nominations for individuals or organizations, and self-nominations are accepted. The top nominee will receive a $3,000 donation to support their efforts. Learn more and submit a nomination by Friday, November 19.
Federal Tort Claims Act Office Hours for Clinical Leaders
NACHC is hosting Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) office hours that will answer health center clinical leaders’ specific questions on topics such as COVID-19 vaccine delivery, monoclonal antibody treatment, navigating telehealth issues, FTCA coverage for virtual services, deeming of volunteer health professionals, unique aspects of a virtual site visit, and risk management in the pandemic. See dates and register now.
Maternity Care Target Area Proposed Criteria Federal Register Notice
HRSA has issued this Federal Register Notice to request comment on the proposed criteria to identify Maternity Care Target Areas. This notice is part of the implementation requirement of the Improving Access to Maternity Care Act (and is in accordance with statutory requirements). Comments are due by Friday, November 26.
Note: While HRSA welcomes input from all stakeholders and parties with an interest in our mission, we specifically seek input from those with knowledge of public health strategies to improve maternal health and maternity care delivery. This includes but is not limited to relevant provider organizations; medical societies, organizations representing medical facilities; or other organizations with expertise in maternity care.
Medicare Mental Health Services: Coverage of New Telecommunications Technology Begins January 1, 2022
Beginning Saturday, January 1, 2022, Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) mental health visits with Medicare beneficiaries can be furnished using interactive, real-time telecommunications technology. CMS formalized this regulatory change through the Calendar Year 2022 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule final rule. It is not tied to the COVID-19 public health emergency and is permanent in the absence of further regulatory action.
In the same way they currently do when visits take place in-person, FQHCs will be allowed to report and receive payment for mental health visits furnished via real-time telecommunication technology including audio-only visits when the beneficiary is not capable of, or does not consent to, the use of video technology.
An in-person, non-telehealth visit must be furnished at least every 12 months for these services; however, exceptions to the in-person visit requirement may be made based on beneficiary circumstances.
FQHCs will be reimbursed 80% of the lesser of their actual charges or the Prospective Payment System rate when these services are furnished to a Medicare beneficiary through telecommunication technology, including audio-only.
Additionally, beginning Saturday, January 1, 2022, FQHCs must add Modifier 95 (Synchronous Telemedicine Service Rendered via Real-Time Interactive Audio and Video Telecommunications System) to claims for mental health visits furnished via audio-video telecommunications and must add Modifier FQ (service provided using audio-only communication technology) to claims for mental health visits furnished via audio-only telecommunications.
COVID-19
Pediatric COVID-19 Vaccination
HHS and the Department of Education recently sent a joint letter to school officials urging them to host a COVID-19 vaccination clinic at their school(s), distribute information about the COVID-19 vaccine to all families with children ages 5-11, and hold conversations with their school communities on the COVID-19 vaccine.
Here’s how health centers can help:
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If you have not already, consider planning a school-located pediatric vaccination clinic. Schools officials will be looking for trusted vaccine providers, and health centers, particularly school-based health centers, present an opportunity for partnership with a familiar and trusted provider.
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Sign up for and log your inventory in Vaccines.gov. The CDC is encouraging schools to identify vaccine providers near them through this website. Find information for how to onboard.
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Stay connected! The CDC will continue to update its Considerations for Planning School-Located Vaccination Clinics website with best practices on how to host a school-located vaccination clinic.
HRSA Acting Administrator Diana Espinosa and speakers from HRSA and CDC recently discussed pediatric COVID-19 vaccination in underserved communities. If you missed this town hall, watch the recording.
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CMS Interim Final Rule: COVID-19 Vaccine Immunization Requirements for Staff among Medicare- and Medicaid-Certified Providers and Suppliers
CMS recently announced the publication of an interim final rule with comment period, Medicare and Medicaid Programs: Omnibus COVID-19 Health Care Staff Vaccination. This emergency regulation requires COVID-19 vaccination of staff across Medicare and Medicaid-certified health care facilities to protect the health and safety of patients. The rule details the requirements that apply to FQHCs and other CMS facility types. For more information, view CMS’ frequently asked questions: http://www.cms.gov/files/document/cms-omnibus-staff-vax-requirements-2021.pdf.
Friday: Special and Vulnerable Populations COVID-19 Forum Webinar Series
Join several NTTAPs to hear discussion of how COVID-19 has impacted health centers and the special populations they serve. Suma Nair, PhD, Director of BPHC's Office of Quality Improvement, will join the sessions. She will provide up-to-date information about assistance for health centers as they recover and stabilize their workforce while continuing to respond to the pandemic.
The next session is this Friday, November 19. Elisabeth Wilhelm, Vaccine Hesitancy Strategist and Team Co-Lead of the Vaccine Confidence and Demand Team on CDC’s COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force, will address evidence-based strategies to increase COVID-19 vaccine confidence.
See all session dates and register now.
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Community Partnerships to Promote the Equitable Distribution of the COVID-19 Vaccine Part I: Outreach and Educational Efforts
Health Outreach Partners invites you to part one of a two-part webinar series highlighting community partnerships created during the COVID-19 vaccine rollout. Speakers will focus on partnerships that helped enable/improve outreach and educational efforts specifically around the COVID-19 vaccine, with a special emphasis on interventions targeting special and vulnerable populations.
Tuesday, December 7
2:00-3:30 p.m. ET
Register here
Health Outreach Partners is a HRSA-funded NTTAP.
Medical Ethics in a COVID-Aware World: Listening Session Series
The National Health Care for the Homeless Council (NHCHC) invites health center staff to discuss the unique ethical considerations that providers have faced during the pandemic. Join with members of your health center team to share your experience on topics including vaccine confidence, emergency shelter facilities, clinical care, and trauma and moral injury. See dates, times, and register for sessions. NHCHC is a HRSA-funded NTTAP.
 Health centers across the nation have distinguished themselves in responding to the current pandemic. Here’s an example:
Bilingual Outreach Efforts and Technology Bring Success in California The staff at Santa Rosa Community Health (Santa Rosa, CA) took a multi-pronged approach to get COVID-19 vaccines to patients and other local residents:
- Individualized vaccination appointments and mass vaccination events. (They even converted an old library that was about to close into a vaccination clinic—in three days!)
- Email, text messages, and phone calls.
- Videos about COVID-19 vaccines on their website.
- Open Zoom meetings where providers fielded questions from the curious and hesitant.
And they did almost all of these activities in both English and Spanish. These collective efforts were very effective—Santa Rosa has provided thousands of COVID-19 vaccinations so far.
The library-turned-clinic offered walk-in vaccinations in addition to appointments. Staff members thought that approach would work well in the city’s predominately Hispanic Roseland neighborhood. “On a Saturday, we would have 100 walk-ins,” said Gabriella Bernal Leroi, the center’s chief operating officer.
The center also worked with organizations that had strong ties to local farmworkers. Santa Rosa sent one of their providers out to talk to the farmworkers about COVID-19 vaccination, and to administer shots. This effort resulted in 100 to 200 newly vaccinated farmworkers each of several days.
Bernal Leroi credits cooperation among local health authorities and community organizations with the success. “Everybody was aligned. It required a lot of collaboration,” she said.
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How is your health center helping your community address COVID-19? Please share stories profiling the diverse ways your health center is addressing COVID-19. We are especially interested in hearing about creative, innovative efforts to:
- Administer pediatric COVID-19 vaccine doses and/or booster shots.
- Support equity in vaccine distribution and boost vaccine confidence.
Send your story and a related photo to our Health Center Stories inbox and you may see your story featured in this newsletter, on Today with Macrae webcasts, or via HRSA social media. If sharing a photo, please include a high-resolution image along with the names of everyone in the picture and make sure each person has signed a HRSA Photo Release Form.
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Behavioral Health
Medicare Mental Health Services: Coverage of New Telecommunications Technology Begins January 1, 2022
See the announcement above.
HIV
Addressing Intimate Partner Violence in HIV Programs: Transforming Care with Survivor-Centered Approaches
Join a learning collaborative to learn about the Universal Education approach to addressing violence in HIV programs and hear survivors discuss how health systems can better meet their needs. Participants will also connect with leaders in the field of HIV rights and harm reduction and examine strategies to ensure the sustainability of efforts to address intimate forms of violence. Apply by Wednesday, December 15. Presented by Health Partners on IPV + Exploitation, a HRSA-funded NTTAP.
PACHA’s Virtual Meeting
The Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA) is holding its 72nd full Council meeting this week. You can watch the second session tomorrow (Wednesday, November 17) from 1:00-5:00 p.m. ET via livestream. Learn more in an HIV.gov blog entry.
Workforce
HRSA’s Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program Now Open
The Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program offers funding to registered nurses, advanced practice registered nurses, and nurse faculty toward payment of their qualifying educational loans in exchange for a two-year service commitment at a health care facility with a critical shortage of nurses or at an eligible school of nursing in the case of nurse faculty. Additional loan repayment is available for a third year of service. Apply by Thursday, January 13, 2022.
Join a TA webinar:
Thursday, December 9
2:30-4:00 p.m. ET
Join the day of the session
If you prefer to join by phone: 833-568-8864
When prompted, enter meeting/webinar ID: 160 600 1560
These HRSA-funded NTTAPs present learning collaboratives:
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Screening and Documenting the Legal Needs of Agricultural Workers and LGBTQIA+ People
Develop strategies for screening and documenting legal issues related to social determinants of health, particularly for agricultural workers and LGBTQIA+ people. Learn how to use screening tools that incorporate sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) data collection. Collaborate with peers and expert facilitators to implement best practices for screening, identifying, and referring patients with legal needs. Apply today. Presented by the National LGBTQIA+ Health Education Center, the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership, and Farmworker Justice.
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Addressing Intimate Partner Violence in HIV Programs: Transforming Care with Survivor-Centered Approaches
See the announcement above.
Oral Health
The HRSA UDS Sealant Measure: 2021 Annual Update
Due to the impacts of COVID-19, the number of children receiving dental sealants in health centers decreased from almost 57% in 2019 to 49% in 2020. The presentation will include BPHC’s Dental Officer, Dr. Folasayo Adunola, providing an update, a review of data collection for the measure, and successful strategies to increase the percentage of children receiving sealants, including a refresher on glass ionomer sealant placement technique to minimize aerosol generation. Hosted by the National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA).
Friday, December 3
1:00-2:00 p.m. ET
Register here
Additional Resources
Screening for Structural Vulnerability
Check out Health Outreach Partners’ new “Coffee Break” on-demand webinar. Speakers describe the importance of screening for structural vulnerability in order to provide your patients with compassionate, comprehensive care that takes into consideration the structural factors that impact their health and well-being. Access the Structural Vulnerability Checklist and learn how you can use it to screen for structural factors that can impact the effectiveness of care.
Evaluating Health Adaptation for a Changing Climate
Interested in the evaluation of health adaptation for a changing climate? Watch this series of short videos from CDC’s Office of Climate and Health. You will learn to evaluate your individual situation according to time, scale, and complexity of the changing climate in your region, state, and local area. This series will teach you to reduce vulnerability and increase resilience in the face of the changing climate.
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