What's New
Deadline Change: Fiscal Year 2021 American Rescue Plan - Health Center Construction and Capital Improvements Progress Report
The first quarterly progress report for the fiscal year (FY) 2021 American Rescue Plan Health Center Construction and Capital Improvements (ARP-Capital, C8E) is due Tuesday, February 15, 2022. It will open in HRSA’s Electronic Handbooks (EHBs) on Tuesday, February 1, 2022.
The reporting period for this first quarterly report is Wednesday, September 15, to Friday, December 31. Visit HRSA’s website for more information about the FY 2021 ARP-Capital funding and technical assistance (TA) resources.
Patient-Centered Medical Home Equity Technical Assistance Symposium
Thank you to all the health centers who submitted abstracts for the symposium. We have contacted all submitters to confirm whether their abstract was accepted.
You can still register for the symposium—and encourage others to as well! Participants will have the opportunity to hear about and discuss best practices and lessons learned from peers and experts in the fields of health equity, quality improvement, and accreditation/recognition.
Monday, January 31, and
Tuesday, February 1, 2022
11:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m. ET
Register here, using key: PCMH2022
Financial and Operational Benchmarking Trends and Techniques
Speakers will share a data-based framework for identifying financial strengths and challenges for health center performance improvement. This webinar is based on Capital Link’s just-released Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) Financial and Operational Performance Analysis and Rural FQHC Financial and Operational Performance Analysis. Using benchmarking and comparative metrics from Capital Link’s audited financial database and UDS data, speakers will highlight the variances between rural, urban, and national FQHC performance, as well as selected target benchmarks that support long-term financial sustainability.
Wednesday, January 12, 2022
1:00-2:00 p.m. ET
Register here
Capital Link is a HRSA-funded National Training and Technical Assistance Partner (NTTAP).
Quarterly 340B Program Registration
Quarterly 340B Program site registration is open from January 1 to 15, 2022. Health centers will be able to register a site that has been verified as implemented and with a site status reflected as “active” in EHBs Form 5B through Friday, February 25, 2022. After that date, the system will close to prepare for the April 1, 2022, start.
Email the 340B Prime Vendor Program or call 888-340-2787 (Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. ET) to register a new site or ask questions. You will need to provide the following information when calling:
- Health center name.
- Site/clinic name.
- Site IDs for all sites.
- HRSA/BPHC grant number.
- Contact name and email address.
- Authorizing official name and email address.
The authorizing official will receive an email message that the account is unlocked and a registration may be submitted.
Open Enrollment Period on HealthCare.gov
The Marketplace Open Enrollment Period on HealthCare.gov is now open and will remain so until Saturday, January 15, 2022. Learn more.
COVID-19
HRSA Health Center COVID-19 Therapeutics Program
The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring our nation's underserved communities and those disproportionately affected by COVID-19 have equitable access to FDA-authorized or approved COVID-19 treatments, such as oral antiviral pills. HRSA, in conjunction with our HHS partners, is launching a program to directly allocate a limited supply of several oral antiviral pills for the outpatient treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 to approximately 200 HRSA-supported health centers initially. As supply increases, HHS and HRSA plan to expand the program to additional health centers in the coming months. Read more.
HRSA COVID-19 Testing Supply Program: Order TODAY!
HRSA-supported health centers (HRSA-funded health centers and Health Center Program look-alikes) and Medicare-certified Rural Health Clinics are invited to join the HRSA COVID-19 Testing Supply Program to order free, FDA-authorized COVID-19 at-home self-test kits for distribution at no cost to their patients and communities.
We’re continuing to onboard health centers into the program. Order by 11:59 p.m. your local time TODAY (Tuesday, December 28). The next order cycle deadline is 11:59 p.m. your local time on Tuesday, January 4, 2022. Subsequent orders may be placed by 11:59 p.m. your local time on each weekly Tuesday (e.g. Tuesday, January 11, 2022; Tuesday, January 18, 2022).
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Advancing Health Center & School Partnerships to Improve COVID-19 Vaccination Administration for Children and Adolescents
This short TA document developed by the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) provides tips and promising practices for health centers partnering with schools to vaccinate the pediatric and adolescent populations, with a focus on COVID-19 vaccinations. NACHC is a HRSA-funded NTTAP.
 Health centers across the nation have distinguished themselves in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Here’s a recent example:
Reaching the Latino Community in Rural Idaho
In order to reach some of southwest Idaho's most rural residents, Terry Reilly Health Services (Nampa, ID) has been sending its mobile vaccination team into nearby communities to offer vaccines. Their focus has been on improving access to the vaccine among the underserved, including members of the local Latino community.
Clinics have taken place at senior centers, schools, farms, food processing plants, and a variety of workplaces, according to Heidi Hart, CEO of Terry Reilly, with a particular focus on reaching Latino communities through partnerships. For example, the health center has partnered with the Consulate of Mexico in Boise. As Mexican nationals visit the Consulate building, they are offered information and resources on getting vaccinated. The Consulate also partnered with Terry Reilly to host a COVID-19 vaccination day earlier this year.
As a result of their diverse outreach efforts, Terry Reilly has delivered more than 21,000 COVID-19 vaccines; more than a third of those who have received these vaccines identify as Hispanic.
“Participating in the Health Center COVID-19 Vaccine Program has allowed the Terry Reilly outreach team to have the necessary vaccine on-hand to meet the ongoing demand for vaccine in our Latino and rural communities,” said Jesus Blanco, Terry Reilly’s outreach manager. “We’ve also increased our visibility and been able to connect people to additional health services.”
Learn more about Terry Reilly’s work.
Please share stories profiling the diverse ways your health center is addressing COVID-19. We are especially seeking stories profiling the ways your health center is holding Family Vaccination Days. See our December 10 bulletin for information about the White House’s announcement of Family Vaccination Days.
Send your story 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
Rural Communities Opioid Response Program-Implementation
HRSA will make approximately 50 awards of $1 million each to rural communities to enhance prevention, treatment, and recovery from substance use disorder. Eligible applicants are domestic public, private, and nonprofit entities that can deliver services in HRSA-designated rural areas, particularly for populations that have historically suffered from poorer health outcomes. See “Related Documents” in Grants.gov for more information. Applications are due by Thursday, January 13, 2022.
Talking about the Link between Adverse Childhood Experiences, Overdose, and Suicide
CDC announced a new website, developed in collaboration with the American Public Health Association, intended to increase awareness of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and their connection to high rates of overdose and suicide. It explains how exposure to certain events and conditions in childhood have lasting effects on health, well-being, and prosperity far into adulthood.
Workforce
The Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH), a HRSA-funded NTTAP, presents several learning collaboratives:
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Frequent Users Systems Engagement
CSH’s Frequent Users Systems Engagement (FUSE) approach is a proven model identifying frequent users of hospitals, jails, shelters, and/or other crisis public services and then improving their lives through supportive housing. For health centers that are screening and documenting for social determinants of health (SDOH), FUSE provides a pathway to use health and other system data. Apply by 8:00 p.m. ET on Friday, January 14, 2022.
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Understanding Non-Clinical and Housing Case Management Staff Roles in Diabetes Prevention and Diabetes Prevention Support
Health centers serving people experiencing homelessness should join to explore effective strategies for diabetes prevention and self-management in non-clinic settings. Learn what housing case managers require to support continued diabetes prevention care and management. Apply by Friday, January 14, 2022.
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Health and Housing Partnerships Capital Expansion
Health centers interested in expanding their health services in collaboration with housing partners should join this opportunity. It will bring together a peer group of health centers to exchange expertise and solutions related to health and housing capital development. Apply by Friday, January 21, 2022. Learn more at a webinar:
Thursday, January 13, 2022
1:30-2:30 p.m. ET
Register here
The SDOH Academy Innovations Showcase Competition: Helping Health Centers Build Healthier Communities
The SDOH Academy* is holding a multi-part interactive activity for health centers to improve how they address SDOH by participating in a combination of training modules and an innovations showcase. Learn more at a kick-off webinar:
Thursday, January 13, 2022
3:00-4:30 p.m. ET
Register here
*The SDOH Academy was founded by the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership (NCMLP), a HRSA-funded NTTAP.
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