- VA: Solicitation of Nomination for Appointment to the Veterans' Rural Health Advisory Committee
- EOP: National Rural Health Day, 2024
- Distance, Workforce Shortages Complicate Mental Health Access in Rural Nevada Communities
- Bird Flu Is Racing Through Farms, but Northwest States Are Rarely Testing Workers
- After Helene, Clinician Teams Brought Critical Care To Isolated WNC Communities
- 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
- 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
- Talking Rural Health Care with U of M
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month
This week is the start of National Children’s Dental Health Month (NCDHM). During February, oral health advocates across the country are raising awareness on the importance of children’s oral health and focusing on the theme, “Sealants Make Sense.” Free materials are available from the American Dental Association (ADA). Oral Health Watch is also hosting the “National Children’s Dental Health Month Tweet Chat” with several cohosts on February 10th at 2 pm ET. Participants are encouraged to follow @OralHealthWatch on Twitter and use #NCDHM and #KidsTeeth in any NCDHM-related tweets.
Click here to view the ADA’s free materials.
Click here to check out @OralHealthWatch on Twitter.
CDC Division of Oral Health New Email Subscriptions
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Oral Health has unveiled a new communication series of three topic-focused email subscriptions to educate, promote, and share information on various oral health subjects. The three new emails are General Updates from the Division of Oral Health, Infection Prevention & Control in Dental Settings, and CDC’s Dental Public Health Residency Program. The emails are intended for dental health care personnel, dental and dental public health students, advocates and educators, researchers, water operators and engineers, and anyone interested in oral health.
Click here to subscribe to the General Updates emails.
Click here to subscribe to the Infection Prevention & Control emails.
Click here to subscribe to the Dental Public Health Residency Program emails.
FDA Warning on Transmucosal Buprenorphine Issued
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released a warning on the use of transmucosal buprenorphine, a drug prescribed to treat opioid use disorder and pain. They warn that it may cause dental problems.
All About Fluoride Resource – 2022 Updates
The American Dental Association (ADA) has updated their “All About Fluoride” one-pager to reflect a 2022 edition which includes an update to the hyperlinked files in the resource. Stakeholders are encouraged to share this resource with all audiences, especially dental providers looking for guidance on how to take action on fluoride.
Good Faith Estimate Requirements for Health Center Dental Programs
The Good Faith Estimates (GFE) requirements of the No Surprise Bills Act went into effect January 1, 2022. Visit the CMS website for more information about the new requirements related to surprise medical bills.
Increasing Female Dentists Improves Health Equity
A study conducted by the Oral Health Workforce Research Center (OHWRC) at the University of Albany’s Center for Health Workforce Studies found that increasing the number of female dentists in the workforce improves health equity. The study, “Evaluating the Impact of Dentists’ Personal Characteristics on Workforce Participation,” found that the percentage of active dentists who are women is increasing with the mean age of female dentists as significantly lower than that of male dentists. Female dentists were also more likely to be racially/ethnically diverse compared to male dentists.
Increasing Female Dentists Improves Health Equity
A new study, Evaluating the Impact of Dentists’ Personal Characteristics on Workforce Participation: https://oralhealthworkforce.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/OHWRC-Evaluating-the-Impact-of-Dentists-Personal-Characteristics-on-Workforce-Participation-2021.pdf conducted by the Oral Health Workforce Research Center (OHWRC) at the University at Albany’s Center for Health Workforce Studies (CHWS) builds on their previous work. A National Study of the Practice Characteristics of Women in Dentistry and Potential Impacts on Access to Care for Underserved Communities that suggested that “female dentists treat more children and more publicly insured patients than their male counterparts. The growth in the number of women in dentistry may expand the capacity of the delivery system to better meet the needs of the population, particularly the underserved.”
Delayed & Missed Child Preventive Checkups During the Pandemic
A new study from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) found that more than 1 in 4 households have delayed or missed children’s preventive checkups due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The study, “Missed and Delayed Preventive Health Care Visits Among U.S. Children Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic,” was published by Public Health Reports and uses data collected in April and May of 2021.
Primary Care and Oral Health Integration
A new article, “What Primary Care Innovation Teaches Us About Oral Health Integration” emphasizes the role of primary care and oral health integration in improving population health and addressing health inequities. The article was published in the in the January 2022 issue of the American Medical Association (AMA) Journal of Ethics. The article offers five lessons from the patient-centered medical home movement to inform primary and oral health care integration.
Dental Assistant Workforce Needs Assessment
The National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA) is conducting a needs assessment to better understand the current state and needs of community health centers’ dental assistant workforce. The results of this needs assessment will inform the development of national resources to assist with the recruitment, retention and training of dental assistants. The needs assessment will take five minutes to complete and is intended for dental leadership and dental assistants working in community health centers. By completing the needs assessment, you will be eligible to enter a drawing for a $50 Amazon gift card. The needs assessment will close on January 31, 2022. Click here to complete.