- The Biden-Harris Administration Supports Rural Health Care
- Biden-Harris Administration Announces $52 Million Investment for Health Centers to Provide Care for People Reentering the Community after Incarceration
- On National Rural Health Day, Reps. Sewell and Miller Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Support Rural Hospitals
- Terri Sewell Cosponsors Bill Reauthoring Program to Support Rural Hospitals
- HRSA: Inclusion of Terrain Factors in the Definition of Rural Area for Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Grants
- Celebrating National Rural Health Day
- DEA, HHS: Third Temporary Extension of COVID-19 Telemedicine Flexibilities for Prescription of Controlled Medications
- Talking Rural Health Care with U of M
- Public Inspection: DEA, HHS: Third Temporary Extension of COVID-19 Telemedicine Flexibilities for Prescription of Controlled Medications
- CDC Presents a Five-Year Plan for Rural Healthcare
- Kansas Faith Leaders 'Well Positioned' To Help Fill Mental Health Care Gaps in Rural Areas
- The CDC Wants More Kansas Farm Workers to Get Their Flu Shots This Season
- Study: Rural Residents More Likely to Struggle With Medical Debt
- Deaths From Cardiovascular Disease Increased Among Younger U.S Adults in Rural Areas
- VA Proposes to Eliminate Copays for Telehealth, Expand Access to Telehealth for Rural Veterans
MACPAC Releases June 2020 Report
The Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC) recently released its June 2020 Report to Congress on Medicaid and CHIP, which contains six chapters addressing some fundamental challenges facing Medicaid: improving integration of care for low-income people age 65 and older, and people with disabilities who are dually eligible for Medicaid and Medicare; ensuring that Medicaid is the payer of last resort when its beneficiaries also have coverage from another insurance program; and addressing concerns about high rates of maternal morbidity and mortality. Rural considerations feature prominently in Chapter 5 on maternal health. Read more here.
MedPAC Releases June 2020 Report
On June 15, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) released its June 2020 Report to the Congress: Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System. Each June, as part of its mandate from the Congress, MedPAC reports on issues affecting the Medicare program as well as broader changes in health care delivery and the market for health care services. Chapter 7 on Medicare’s end-stage renal disease prospective payment system discusses rural payment adjustments. Read more here.
New Medicare Waivers to Address COVID-19
On June 12, CMS added a new item to its list of emergency declaration waivers that provide the health care community with the flexibilities needed to care for patients during the COVID-19 public health emergency. In the latest update, CMS is waiving the July 1 submission deadline for new Medicare GME affiliation agreements and the June 30 deadline for amendments of existing Medicare GME affiliation agreements (page 9). Find more information here. For information on rural graduate medical education more broadly, HRSA-funded resources are available from RuralGME.org.
CARES Act Provider Relief Fund Distribution Summary
HHS recently published a one-page summary document providing general information on the different Provider Relief Fund distributions. This includes a timeline of funding along with information on eligibility and formulas used to make distributions. Read more here.
Accepting Applications: CMS Direct Contracting Professional and Global Options – July 6
On June 4, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that they are accepting applications for the Performance Year 1 cohort of the Direct Contracting Professional and Global Options. Direct Contracting is intended to test whether the risk-based payment strategies available under the model align financial incentives and offer model participants (Direct Contracting Entities or DCEs). Each DCE must contract with Direct Contracting Participant Providers, which may include, but are not limited to, physicians or other practitioners in group practice arrangements, networks of individual practices of physicians or other practitioners, hospitals employing physicians or other practitioners, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), and Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). Applications for Performance Year 1 are due by July 6, 2020, for a start date of April 1, 2021. Find more information here.
Major Depression, Treatment Receipt, and Treatment Sources Among Non-Metropolitan and Metropolitan Adults
Major depression remains a relatively common health problem, but little is known about the prevalence of major depression and its treatment in non-metropolitan areas as compared to metropolitan areas. Using 2017 data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health researchers at the Rural and Underserved Research Center estimated and compared between non-metropolitan and metropolitan adults the prevalence of depression, receipt of treatment for depression, and sources of treatment for depression. Read more here.
CDC: Trends in Occupational Lung Diseases
In its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) examined deaths due to pneumoconiosis – preventable occupational lung disease caused by inhaling dust particles such as coal or mineral dust. From 1968 to 2000, death rates for all pneumoconioses decreased, though preventable deaths continue to occur. Read more here.
#WellChildWednesdays @HRSAgov
Last month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention assessed the impact of the pandemic on pediatric vaccinations and found a noticeable decline beginning in the week after the national emergency declaration. To help remind parents and caregivers of the need to protect children from preventable disease such as measles, the Maternal and Child Health Bureau at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) will be releasing social media messages with the hashtag #WellChildWednesdays. Messages will address well visits, immunizations, adolescent and young adult care, and nutrition, safety, and mental health as topics to be discussed with pediatric providers.
HRSA on Child Poverty and Mental Health.
A new study published in the Journal of Children and Poverty finds an association between family economic hardship and child mental health conditions. Researchers at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) based the study on data from the 2016 and 2017 National Surveys of Children’s Health, which is a nationally representative survey of U.S. Children ages 0 to 17. Read more here.
The Hidden Pandemic Behind COVID-19
Cases of domestic violence, child abuse and sexual exploitation in the time of COVID-19 appear to have risen in emergency rooms and health clinics across the country since March. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has published a 4-page document entitled Intimate Partner Violence and Child Abuse Considerations During COVID-19 with hyperlinks to relevant SAMHSA and non-SAMHSA resources. If you would like to view the HRSA webinar on this subject, access the recording by registering with this link. This will redirect you to the recording where you can watch the full session and download the slide presentation and resources shared. For audio replay, please use the line 866-360-7719, with passcode 52020. Read more here.