Oct. 3, 2011 | Vol. XVI No. 14 |
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Open Me!
There's Health Center Money Inside
There are plenty of opportunities for health centers to engage in positive change, in spite of a difficult political situation. The Administration is making resources available to community providers--below you will find two federal grant opportunities and new proposed rules for Medicaid enrollment that will go into effect in 2014. Because the decisions being made in Congress will impact our work for years to come, please read on for actions you can take to engage in the discussion over deficit reduction.
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Two Federal Grant Opportunities
Health Center Capital Funding: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced $700 million to help build, expand and improve community health centers. These capital development funds, authorized by the Affordable Care Act, will support renovation and construction projects, boosting the ability to provide care among underserved populations as well as create jobs in local communities. Of these funds, $600 million will support 125-150 larger project awards of $500,000 to $5 million each while the remaining $100 million will support 250-300 awards of less than $500,000. Application due date is October 12, 2011, so act fast! More details these funds are available at HRSA's website at grant number HRSA 12-115 for the larger awards, and HRSA-12-116 for the smaller awards.
Rural Health Outreach Services: HHS has also just announced $12 million for 80 three-year awards that demonstrate effective models of outreach and service delivery through collaboration, adoption of an evidence-based or promising practice model, demonstration of health outcomes, replicability and sustainability. Proposed projects will have an outcomes-oriented approach that will enhance and sustain the delivery of effective health care in rural communities by tracking specific health indicators that will demonstrate the impact of their project at the end of their grant period. They will be based on evidence-based or promising practice models in order to avoid "reinventing the wheel" and demonstrate health status improvement in rural communities. This grant opportunity is ideal for working with homeless and other vulnerable populations. More information is available at HRSA's website at grant number HRSA-12-083. |
New Proposed Rules on Medicaid Eligibility, Enrollment and Coordination
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently proposed new rules regarding Medicaid eligibility and enrollment (available here) to begin in 2014. These rules are a critical component of the Affordable Care Act's expansion of Medicaid to most individuals earning at or below 138% of the Federal Poverty Level. Two-thirds of all patients seen at Health Care for the Homeless projects are uninsured-but many will be eligible for Medicaid starting on January 1, 2014 (or earlier at state option). The National HCH Council has prepared comments on these proposed new rules, which make significant changes to how Medicaid is organized at the state level (for example, simplifying eligibility categories, streamlining income requirements, allowing a "no fixed address" field on the application, etc.). Many of the changes will make Medicaid an easier program for clients to navigate (either on their own, or with assistance), but some of the provisions need more detail in order to ensure the new system works best for those with unstable housing. Comments are due to CMS no later than 5pm on October 31, 2011: please consider using the Council's prepared response or craft your own when submitting comments from your organization. CMS needs to hear from many of us in order to understand how homelessness impacts Medicaid enrollment and re-determination. |
Washington Update and Action Alert
A government shutdown was narrowly averted last week, but the real peril for HCH projects, consumers, and safety net providers will come from the decisions of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (aka the Super Committee). This Committee began its work earlier this month and has until Nov. 23 to present a plan that reduces the deficit by at least $1.2 trillion over ten years. This task is unprecedented, both in the scope and in the short period of time allowed, and most inside Washington are not optimistic about its prospects for success. This Committee represents a significant threat. Non-defense discretionary spending faces automatic cuts of $440 billion from FY13-FY21 if no deal is reached. If a partial deal is reached then the automatic cuts will kick in to achieve $1.2 trillion (for instance if a deal is struck for $600 billion than the remaining $600 billion will come from the automatic cuts). A worst case scenario for HCH projects and consumers would be a partial deal that significantly cuts Medicaid, followed by automatic cuts in discretionary programs like health centers. Many in the Super Committee have vowed to only consider cuts and not increased revenue, while even President Obama has recommended significant cuts to Medicaid. The tenor of this debate needs to change; you and your communities have the power to change it. - The following publication from our friends at the Center for Budget and Policy Prorities provides detail on the current budget and deficit reduction debate.
- Contact your elected officials (www.house.gov; www.senate.gov; or toll-free at 1(877) 210-5351) and let them know your priorities for federal spending and deficit reduction.
- Ask your elected officials to speak to their leadership and the member of the Super Committee.
- Leave a comment for the Super Committee at http://deficitreduction.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contact.
- Talk to your colleagues, friends, and family about the choices we face.
- Contact drabbitt@nhchc.org if you would like more information or would like to be more active.
If you do one, any, or all of these actions, you will make a difference in the direction we seem to be headed. Take action today and remember we have less than two months to influence this process! And stay tuned for more on this year's funding in the coming weeks... |
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Dan Rabbitt, Health Policy Organizer
National Health Care for the Homeless Council
drabbitt@nhchc.org | 443-703-1337 | www.nhchc.org
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HEALTH CARE AND HOUSING ARE HUMAN RIGHTS
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