This week, the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, through the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), announced proposed changes to the Confidentiality of Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Patient Records under 42 CFR part 2 (“Part 2”), which protects patient privacy and records concerning treatment related to substance use challenges from unauthorized disclosures. Specifically, the proposed rule increases coordination among providers and increases protections for patients concerning records disclosure to avoid discrimination in treatment. While substance use challenges exist in both rural and urban communities, “many rural areas and populations have disproportionately suffered from a growth in the use of opioids, heroin, prescription medications, and methamphetamines (meth)” according to a 2019 brief from the Rural Policy Research Institute. Comments are due by January 31.

  The program is designed for mid-career professionals with a commitment to making a further impact in rural health practice and policy.  Applicants must have experience in either the Rural Health Clinic setting or a rural health care system.  The fellowship requires a full-time, in-person commitment for either a 4-week continuous timeframe, or two, 2-week periods in May, June, or July 2023. The selected candidate will reside in Alexandria, Virginia during the fellowship period and work within the NARHC DC Office, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m-6 p.m. Lodging and travel expenses will be fully covered by the program, and an $8,000 stipend will be provided the fellow directly. Applications are due by January 2.

HRSA is seeking qualified candidates to be considered for appointment to the committee that advises the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services on how to improve the health status of infants and women before, during, and after pregnancy.  For its membership, the committee tries to ensure a balanced representation of geographic areas, gender, and ethnic and minority groups, as well as individuals with disabilities. Deadline January 23.

To more effectively address known barriers to treatment for substance use disorder (SUD), policy researchers looked at feedback from 27 community-based programs serving predominantly people of color across the U.S. Beyond poverty and racism, providers describe challenges retaining staff with appropriate language and cultural skills as well as a complex patchwork of social skills.  Released in November by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) the report calls for more research to understand how federal, state, and local policies and programs can maximize the strengths of communities of varied backgrounds, while also implementing evidence-based practices.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is making a big push to prevent the spread of influenza.  Most recent data from the 2021-2022 season show 4 million flu-related medical visits, 100,000 flu-related hospitalizations, and 5,000 flu deaths.  This year has already seen several states with the highest levels of respiratory illness that include fever plus a cough or sore throat.  The CDC recommends flu vaccination for everyone aged 6 months and older and provides a broad range of communication resources to get the word out.

The deadline to apply for the Pennsylvania Primary Care Loan Repayment Program is Dec. 14, 2022, at 7:00 pm. Physicians, dentists, and psychologists are eligible for up to $80,000 full-time and $40,000 half-time. Other practitioners are eligible for up to $48,000 full-time and up to $24,000 half-time. Please make sure your primary care, dental, and behavioral health providers know about this opportunity. To find out who is eligible, go to the website or download The LRP Fact Sheet. If you or a staff member is interested in applying, review the Request for Applications first. Questions? Contact Judd Mellinger-Blouch, Director of Pennsylvania Primary Care Career Center.

Fierce Healthcare reported that Medicare saved $70 million in 2021 through its direct contracting model, which pays providers population-based capitated rates, according to data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The savings were generated by 53 organizations from April through December 2021, with 38 organizations earning $47 million in shared savings. The model has been revamped to address health equity and will transition to the Accountable Care Organization Realizing Equity, Access and Community Health (REACH) Model in 2023. Read More.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released an Informational Bulletin that describes the 2023 and 2024 updates to the Core Set of children’s healthcare quality measures for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and the Core Set of health care quality measures for adults enrolled in Medicaid (the Adult Core Set). The updates to the Core Sets will take effect in the 2023 reporting cycle, which will begin in the early fall of 2023.