News from GRHA

GRHA Newsletter
Week of July 29, 2011

www.grhainfo.org

grha@grhainfo.org
478-552-3620

Georgia Rural Health Association (GRHA) is the oldest state rural health association in the country. Founded in 1981, this nonprofit network of healthcare providers, educators, and individuals is united in its commitment to improve the health and healthcare services of rural Georgians. Join now!

GEORGIA RURAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION

ANNUAL CONFERENCE

2011 Conference Information Click Here

Attendee Registration Click Here

Sponsor Registration Click Here

Georgia Insurance Commissioner Ralph Hudgens scheduled to speak on Affordable Care Act

Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public

Health, and Dr. Frank Shelp, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities, to speak on state agency visions for rural health

More conference announcements coming soon!

2011 GRHA Board of Directors

President

Nannette Turner

Immediate Past President

Greg Dent

President Elect

Sallie Barker

Vice President

Denise Kornegay

Treasurer

Sheila Freeman

Secretary

Deidre Howell

Board Members

Ann Addison

Carla Belcher

Laura Bland Gillman

Johnny Grant

Sue Nieman

Charles Owens

Chris Parker

Rhett Partin

Caroline Holley Womack

Matt Caseman

GRHA Welcomes New Members

Platinum Corporate Sponsor

Georgia Alliance of Community Hospitals

Student

Kathryn Smith

Individual

Dr. Anil T. Mangla

Callaway Gardens Resort

NOTICE

To make hotel reservations at Callaway Gardens Lodge & Spa you will need to call this number: 706-489-3300 and ask for reservations. You will need to tell the reservation agent you are booking a room with the Georgia Rural Health Association Annual Conference and want the group rate.

GRHA STUDENT RESOURCE PAGE

Rural Health Clinic Conference Video Presentations are now available on the GRHA website!

Rural Health Clinic Conference 2011 Archived Flyer

GRHA Corporate Members

Coca Cola

Amerigroup

WGA logo

GAPHC2

July Observances

Cord Blood Awareness Month

International Group B Strep Awareness Month

Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month

National Cleft & Craniofacial Awareness & Prevention Month

For those of you who want to stay up to date through social networks, please join the Georgia Rural Health Association Facebook page and follow us on Twitter!

By joining our social media sites, you have the ability to stay updated on the latest rural health information in Georgia. Please help us spread the word! Thank you for your support and feel free to contact us with any questions.

MAG/GMGMA WORKSHOPS

The Medical Association of Georgia (MAG) in partnership with the Georgia Medical Group Management Association (GMGMA) will condut innovative CME-accredited workshops across the state in 2011.

Details

Notice

GRHA circulates state and national news as an information service only. Inclusion of information is not intended as an endorsement.

GEORGIA RURAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION

ANNUAL MEETING & CONFERENCE

GRHA- KEEPIN' IT RURAL: 30 YEARS & COUNTING

Call for Abstracts -

Students Poster Session

Deadline Extended

Georgia Rural Health Association 2011 Awards of Excellence

Please visit our website for award descriptions and a Nomination Form. Completed nominations must be received by August 15, 2011.

Links are on our Homepage under GRHA Annual Meeting or

Call the GRHA home office- 478-552-3620 and request a form

Updates on Medicaid / ICD-10 Implementation

Link to an Informational Bulletin to update States and other interested parties on two important items:

A reminder about program integrity related to Medicaid eligibility workers; and

Information on ICD-10 Implementation.

cmcs_info_bulletin

Updated Side-by-side Summary Compares Medicare Provisions In Major Debt-Reduction Plans

Many of the debt-reduction plans being considered by Congress and the Administration include proposals that would achieve substantial savings from the Medicare program over time. An updated side-by-side summary of the proposals allows users to easily compare the key Medicare provisions found in five major debt-reduction plans put forward by the White House, Congress and independent, bipartisan commissions. The five plans are: the President's Framework for Shared Prosperity and Shared Fiscal Responsibility; the House Concurrent Budget Resolution; the Senate "Gang of Six" Proposal; the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (Bowles-Simpson); and the Bipartisan Policy Center Debt Reduction Task Force (Domenici-Rivlin).

The summary also includes brief descriptions of Medicare proposals in other deficit reduction proposals from American Enterprise Institute; Cato Institute; Center for American Progress, Sen. Tom Coburn; Congressional Progressive Caucus; Dr. Bill Galston and Ms. Maya MacGuineas; Heritage Foundation; Institute for America's Future; Sen. Joseph Lieberman and Sen. Coburn; Our Fiscal Security; Dr. Alice Rivlin and Chairman Paul Ryan; Republican Study Committee; Roosevelt Institute Campus Network; and Chairman Ryan.

The side-by-side summary is part of the Foundation's Project on Medicareâ€™s Future , which focuses on producing timely analysis of leading Medicare reforms affecting people on Medicare. The project also has analyzed the potential impact of specific reforms, including raising Medicareâ€™s age of eligibility and limiting first-dollar coverage under Medigap .

Millions in U.S. Lack Access to Dentists

Study Shows Geography, Economics, and Shortage of Dentists Limit Dental Care

Fewer than half of Americans see a dentist each year and millions live in areas where access to dental care is severely limited, a new analysis from the health policy group Institute of Medicine (IOM) finds.

A severe shortage of dentists, especially those serving rural and minority groups, is contributing to the "persistent and systemic" barriers to oral health care, the report noted.

According to the report:

33 million Americans live in areas that are underserved by dental health professionals.
4.6 million children went without dental checkups in 2008 because their families could not afford them.
In 2006, almost two-thirds of retirees (62%) did not have adequate dental coverage.

Full article

Georgia declares war on obesity as rates continue to rise

from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
obesity

With a new study showing Tuesday that more than 30 percent of Georgians are obese, state public health officials said they are drawing up battle plans to try to stop the epidemic.

"We really have declared war on obesity," said Dr. Kimberly Redding, director of the Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Program at the Georgia Department of Public Health.

Georgia's obesity rate reached 30.4 percent in 2010, up from 27.7 percent in 2009, according to the new data, which was collected in each state through the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

Georgia isn't the fattest state. Mississippi holds that title with an obesity rate of 34.5 percent. But Georgia's rate exceeds the national average of 27.6 percent.

Read Article