A collaborative community process to define a town by what it offers the people who live there is the short way to describe the work of placemaking.  This digital toolkit from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the University of Kentucky’s Community and Economic Development Initiative includes examples of rural placemaking projects along with technical assistance providers, funders, and guides to resources.

  HRSA’s Bureau of Health Workforce (BHW) issued new information for applicants for this funding opportunity. Through the Community Health Worker Training Program, HRSA will provide funding to health professions schools, Federally Qualified Health Centers, and community-based organizations to train 13,000 community health workers for underserved communities.  See BHW’s website for more help with applications due on June 14.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recently released a final recommendation statement on screening for primary open-angle glaucoma. The Task Force concluded that more research is needed on screening for people who have not reported concerns with their vision. To view the recommendation, the evidence on which it is based, and a summary for clinicians, please go here. The final recommendation statement can also be found in the May 24, 2022, online issue of JAMA.

The Pennsylvania Immunization Coalition has released its new Immunization Champions Back-to- School Toolkit. This toolkit is to provide information to increase routine childhood and adolescent vaccination rates in Pennsylvania and protect against vaccine-preventable diseases.

A new Agency for Health Research and Quality (AHRQ) handbook, A Handbook for Health IT Advisors and Practice Facilitators, provides practical information and strategies for primary care practice coaches to support improved care by helping practices effectively use health information technology (IT). It covers essential information and techniques to help primary care practices use electronic health records and other health IT for quality improvement (QI). This resource features information on clinical decision support, patient portals, and other technologies, using patient-generated data, clinical quality measures, and risk stratification in primary care. The handbook includes helpful tips, examples, and use cases to support the use of health IT for QI efforts and is a complimentary resource to AHRQ’s Primary Care Practice Facilitation Curriculum and training modules.

A newly developed document on the Health Center Resource Clearinghouse—the consolidated website for resources for health centers developed by HRSA’s National Training & Technical Assistance Partners (NTTAPs)—contains patient instructions for using at-home QuickVue COVID-19 tests that are being distributed at health centers. Instructions contain text and graphics and cover both sides of a single sheet. Health centers can use these documents as handouts when distributing the kits or send them to patients as PDFs via text or email. This resource is available in multiple languages, including English, Spanish, Burmese, Chinese (simplified), Chinese (traditional), Dari, Hindi, Ilokano, Ka\’Ren, Laotian, Nepali, Pashto, Swahili, Tagalog, Thai, and Urdu.

Pennsylvania Medicaid participants could see huge benefits from the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), a new federal program to help low-income households pay for internet services and connected devices. Apart from the practical advantages of connecting to the internet, this initiative could also impact consumers’ health by facilitating access to telehealth and making it easier to manage their healthcare and benefits. The ACP was established as part of President Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure package (the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act). Eligible households can receive a discount of up to $30 per month on their broadband service, plus a one-time discount of up to $100 for a laptop, tablet, or desktop computer. Additionally, some families may be able to get high-speed internet at no cost through exclusive low-cost service plans. To qualify for the ACP benefit, a household must meet any one of the following requirements listed on the FCC Website:

• Annual household income below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level ($55,500 for a household of 4 in 2022)
• Have a household member receiving a Lifeline benefit
• Have a household member participating in certain government assistance programs, including Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, SSI, Federal Public Housing Assistance (FPCA), Veterans Pension and Survivors Benefit, Free or Reduced-Price School Lunch
• Have a household member participating in certain Tribal Assistance Programs

Households interested in signing up for ACP benefits can go to AffordableConnectivity.gov to apply online or print out a mail-in application.

When the COVID-19 public health emergency ends, some telehealth policies of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will change. Stay up to date on the latest national telehealth policy developments and get ahead of what to expect once the COVID-19 public health emergency ends. It’s a good idea to bookmark HHS’ telehealth page, which highlights permanent changes, what is being phased out, and additional considerations.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends routine assessment for post-COVID-19 conditions among persons who survive COVID-19. A new CDC study paints a picture of the impact of long COVID-19, including that COVID-19 survivors, have twice the risk for developing pulmonary embolism or respiratory conditions and one in five COVID-19 survivors ages 18-64 and one in four older than 65 experienced at least one incident condition that might be attributable to the previous COVID-19. CDC published the following resources for managing or educating patients with possible long COVID-19: Post-COVID-19 Conditions: Overview for Healthcare Providers and Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions.

From 2010 to 2019, the reported number of Lyme disease cases in Pennsylvania jumped 173% — from 3,298 to 8,998 — making Pennsylvania the state with the greatest number of Lyme disease cases in the country. Read more.