Weekly E-Blast:
Voicing the latest news on Communities in Need
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COUNTDOWN TO ENROLLMENT
67 Days
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Have news to share with us? Want to be featured on our next E-Digest? Want to read about something in particular? Please email us at aneeqa@machc.com.
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Community Health Center Spotlight
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NATIONAL HEALTH CENTER WEEK is just 16 DAYS away.......!!!!
NHCW is just 16 days away - August 11-17!
All health centers are encouraged to post Health Center Week celebration and event details on the website here - the password to post events is: healthy. While NHCW 2013 is August 11-17, events occurring anytime during the entire month of August are welcome to be posted on the website.
PLEASE make sure to support your community events by attending National Health Center Week at a Health Center near you!Amongst Mid-Atlantic Health Centers, we have events taking place at the following health centers.Wilmington, DE - Henrietta Johnson Medical Center will be hosting a National Health Center kick-off on August 12, 2013 at their main center location.Henrietta Johnson will also host a Staff Recognition Day on August 16, 2013 (held at main center location)
Greenbelt, MD - Community Clinic will be holding an Opening Ceremony on August 7th from 10:30 am - noon. Folks interested in attending, please RSVP to 301-340-7525 or THI.NGUYEN@CCIWEB.ORG.
Conowingo, MD - West Cecil Health Center is also hosting their new Site Opening on August 7th. Interested folks, please get in touch (410) 378-9696 or visit West Cecil's website for updates.
49 Rock Springs Road, Conowingo, MD
IF YOUR HEALTH CENTER IS HOSTING AN EVENT DURING NHCW, PLEASE CONTACT US ASAP!
We will continue to highlight and support all the wonderful achievements of Health Centers!
Invite Your Legislators during NHCW!
NACHC strongly encourages Community Health Centers nationwide to celebrate National Health Center Week (NHCW) in August by holding events, inviting Members of Congress to visit health centers in the districts, and hosting events, such as health fairs, community celebrations, or media events to educate the public about the mission and value of health centers. The theme for this year's NHCW is: Celebrating America's Health Centers: Transforming Health Care in Our Local Communities.
You could be next! Please contact Aneeqa Chowdhury at aneeqa@machc.com to be placed on the SPOTLIGHT!
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36 training activities for safety net healthcare professionals in medically under-served communities. Sponsored by AHRQ.
Has your Health Center been attending the Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP) monthly calls and Regional Meetings?! Attending HPP Meetings will not only keep you and your health center on top of the latest Emergency Preparedness requirements and news, but there are other great incentives for those health centers who attend! For a list of other EP events, please visit this url.
Negotiate Managed Care Contracts
Did you know that many managed care contracts:
- Contain provisions which permit managed care organizations (MCOs) to pass any fines imposed on them by state and federal agencies to providers?
- Recoup payments through off-set so that they are rarely noticed?
- Bar health centers from waiving patient cost-sharing amounts?
For more on these and other managed care contract issues, register for one or more of NACHC's Managed Care Contracting series webinars. Click here.
Health Care Price Transparency: Lessons from Three High Performing States
July 22, 2:30-4:00 PM (EDT)
Join this webinar to learn about price transparency in three high-performing states, barriers faced on the way to improved transparency, and lessons for states interested in pursuing this work. Moderators from Catalyst for Payment Reform and the Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute will facilitate a conversation with leaders from Virginia, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire.
7th Annual 5K Walk Run For Our Kids Health
When: Saturday, July 27, 2013
Where: Dravo Plaza located at the Riverfront in Wilmington, DE
Henrietta Johnson Medical Center in conjunction with the City of Wilmington's Healthy 2020 and a kickoff to National Health Center's Week invites you to: Get in Shape with a Cause!!!
Registration begins at 7:30 am Walk/Run starts at 8:30 am
Registration: $20
Day of Events: $25
To Register, visit wwww.races2run.com
Coffee Talk - Medically Underserved Area or Population Review
Guest Speaker: Elizabeth Vaidya, DHMH
When: August 6, 10 am - 11 am
To register, click here
ACA Series of Webinars in August!
WEBINAR I:
ACA101- Introduction to Affordable Care Act and what it means for MD and the U.S.
An ACA Toolkit will be unveiled for your convenience by MACHC during this webinar.
When: Tuesday, August 6, 11am -12pm
Register HERE.
WEBINAR II:
ACA Outreach and Enrollment Strategies and how your health center can brand itself in light of ACA.
Guest Speaker Danielle Davis and Leslie Lyles Smith from Maryland Exchange
*Registration information to come next week!
WEBINAR III:
ACA: The National Perspective
TBA
Building Capacity for Research and Quality Improvement Training
Save the Date for August 22, 2013
This day-long training immediately before NACHC's Community Health Institute & Expo at the Hyatt Regency Chicago will help you build the skills and infrastructure necessary to collect and use data in Electronic Health Records to improve care, test interventions, and engage in research. Registration link to come soon!
Registration is Now Open!!!
MACHC's 31st Annual Meeting & Conference "Strategic Perspectives on Reform, Innovation and Accountability" September 19th & 20th, 2013
Turf Valley Conference Center
Ellicott City, MD
Join us at MACHC's 31st Annual Meeting & Conference, where you will receive the latest information on all areas relevant to the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. There will be much to learn for individuals of all positions, including but not limited to: CEOs, CFOs, COOs, Site Administrators, and Board Members of your health center!
The full implementation of the Affordable Care Act by the Obama Administration is already underway. Health Care Reform is now the law of the land. The implementation of the Affordable Care Act is perhaps the most revolutionary health reform breakthrough to occur in the healthcare sector since the creation of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965.
Community Health Centers are being challenged to combine efficiency and innovation in order to deliver quality health care in an increasingly competitive environment. However, there remains much speculation and uncertainties about what the ACA will do this fall.
Join us at MACHC's 31st Annual Conference where we will discuss some of the hottest subjects surrounding the ACA:
- Best practices on how to market your Health Center and the FQHC brand
- How to conduct an Organizational Readiness Assessment
- Maryland and Delaware from each State's perspective in readiness for ACA implementation
- Preparing for the new complexities in billing in order to receive maximum compensation
- The importance of board member preparation and participation in the new healthcare paradigm
Click here to register!
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Policy, Advocacy and Legislation
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Community Health Centers have been providing quality primary and preventative health care to the nation's most vulnerable populations--regardless of their ability to pay--for over four decades. In 2011 they served over 22 million people in over 9,000 sites across the country. The community health center model of health care has proven to be efficient and successful in providing much-needed services to address chronic diseases generating $24 billion in savings to the US health care system.
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Community health centers such as Chase Brexton are about to play a far larger role in the nation's health care when the federal health reform law is fully implemented in January.
The Affordable Care Act includes $11 billion to be awarded to community health centers over five years to build new clinics and expand existing ones. By 2015, the health centers are expected to double the number of patients they serve to 40 million.
Maryland health centers - which last year served nearly 300,000 patients, many needy and uninsured - are bracing for an influx of new clients who will now have access to insurance. The centers also predict existing patients will come on a more consistent basis, rather than just for emergencies or major illnesses, once they are insured.
Health centers will continue to have to treat some uninsured as part of their mission. People who are in the country illegally won't be able to enroll in insurance, for instance.
They will still operate under the mission that they always have," said Bernadette Johnson, director of programming services and business development for the Mid Atlantic Association of Community Health Centers, which serves centers in Maryland and Delaware.
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According to WellPoint, the nation's second largest medical insurer, small-business owners' decision to drop health insurance coverage has less to do with cost savings and more to do with confusion regarding employer purchasing options. "What we are seeing is that more of the small group employers today still can't make a decision on choices yet because those choices are not readily available in the market until the exchanges are fully up and running," says WellPoint chief financial officer Wayne DeVeydt.
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Complementary and alternative medicine -- a term that encompasses meditation, acupuncture, chiropractic care and homeopathic treatment, among other things -- has become increasingly popular. About four in 10 adults (and one in nine children) in the U.S. are using some form of alternative medicine, according to the National Institutes of Health. And with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, the field could make even more headway in the mainstream health care system. That is, unless the fine print -- in state legislation and insurance plans -- falls short because of unclear language and insufficient oversight. 
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| National healthcare reform sparks concern about scams
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A brewing Republican versus Republican fight over whether to use a government funding measure to choke off Obamacare is splitting the party ahead of this fall's budget battles. A growing number of Republicans are rejecting calls from leading conservatives, including Sens. Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Rand Paul, to defund the president's health care law in the resolution to keep the government running past Sept. 30. The rift exposes an emerging divide over how the GOP can best achieve its No. 1 goal - to repeal Obamacare - while highlighting the spreading fears that Republicans would lose a public relations war if the dispute leads to a government shutdown in the fall.
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The national health reform law is expected to open the door for identity theft and insurance scams when millions of uninsured Americans begin enrolling in coverage this fall, officials and advocates warn.
Especially at risk when enrollment begins in October, experts say, are seniors, people who speak limited English and those who have never had insurance before.
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Come October, a new health insurance marketplace will be open for business in Delaware, with three insurance firms under consideration to offer individual coverage next year.
The marketplace, formerly known as the "the exchange," was created through the Affordable Care Act to provide affordable health insurance to Americans not afforded it through employers. It's a brand new process and to help reach and connect people to coverage on the exchange, the government has created and funded "marketplace guide" positions.
Officials in Delaware today announced four organizations that will employ the guides, funded through a $4 million federal establishment grant. The grant, renewable for an additional year, will fund guides for one year at:
* Brandywine Womens Health Associates
* Christiana Care
* Delmarva Foundation
* Westside Family Healthcare
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Maryland's coastal waters could rise to six feet in this century. Maryland, with 3,100 miles of tidal shore along the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay, is one of several states, including Virginia, Delaware, Louisiana and Florida, most vulnerable to sea-level rise pushed in part by global warming that has caused glaciers to melt and oceans to expand.
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The owner of Angelo's restaurant says he's happy to have a reprieve from the health law - but still has unanswered questions about his obligations to his workers.
Until the Obama administration announced the delay of enforcing the Affordable Care Act's requirement for employer health insurance this month, companies with at least 50 workers had to offer affordable coverage to full-time employees by 2014 or pay a substantial fine. Most employers already provide health insurance, so the postponement will have little effect at most workplaces. But retailers, hotels, restaurants and other businesses that haven't traditionally insured all employees are happy for the reprieve and even hope that Congress might still change or abolish the law.
Agency is cracking down on more than a dozen companies that market illegal treatments for diabetes, ranging from bogus dietary supplements to prescription drugs sold online without a prescription.
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What's the LATEST
on the ACA this week?
Debate heats up ahead of key Affordable Care Act reforms
With most Americans mandated to purchase health insurance by January 1 or risk paying a tax, the debate over the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is heating up yet again.
Last week, Republicans in the House of Representatives made their 38th attempt to gut Obamacare, while Democrats released statistics they cite as proof that millions of people are already benefiting from the most significant overhaul and expansion of the nation's health care system since Medicare and Medicaid were passed in 1965.
Kaiser Family Foundation recently released a report underlining the prominent issues surrounding Affordable Care Act implementation and how it affects HIV/AIDS patients as well as Ryan White providers. This is a great article for health centers who are unsure about the impact that the ACA will have on this patient population. Click here for full article.
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Grants & Funding Opportunities
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Debunk the Myths: Grant Application Video Series
Federal grants can be excellent funding opportunities for your project, but not understanding the process can lead to a great deal of frustration. This video series will debunk common myths and assist you with your grant applications.
FY 2014 Service Area Competition (SAC) Technical Assistance
Service Area Competition - New, Competing Continuation, and Supplemental (HRSA-14-021, HRSA-14-022, HRSA14-023, HRSA-14-024, HRSA-14-025, HRSA-14-026, HRSA-14-027, HRSA-14-028)
Through the Service Area Competition (SAC), HRSA will award approximately $468 million in funding to an estimated 310 SAC applicants. A SAC application is a request for Federal financial assistance to support comprehensive primary health care services for a competitively announced underserved area or population. All available service areas (see below) are currently served by Health Center Program grantees whose project periods are ending in FY 2014.
Application Deadlines
| Project Period Start Date | HRSA Announcement Number | Grants.gov Deadline (11:59 PM ET) | HRSA EHB Deadline (5:00 PM ET) | | November 1, 2013 | HRSA-14-021 | July 24, 2013 | August 7, 2013 | | December 1, 2013 | HRSA-14-022 | July 31, 2013 | August 14, 2013 | | January 1, 2014 | HRSA-14-023 | August 14, 2013 | August 28, 2013 | | February 1, 2014 | HRSA-14-024 | September 11, 2013 | September 25, 2013 | | March 1, 2014 | HRSA-14-025 | October 9, 2013 | October 23, 2013 | | April 1, 2014 | HRSA-14-026 | October 30, 2013 | November 13, 2013 | | May 1, 2014 | HRSA-14-027 | December 4, 2013 | December 18, 2013 | | June 1, 2014 | HRSA-14-028 | January 8, 2014 | January 22, 2014
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*Please click on the title for more information regarding the various grants.
Community Access to Child Health (CATCH) Implementation Funds Program
Application Deadline: July 31, 2013
Awards for $5,000 - $12,000 to support pediatricians in the initial and/or pilot stage of implementing community-based child health projects related to medical home access, health services to uninsured/underinsured, secondhand smoke exposure, immunization programs, and Native American child health.
Application Deadline: July 31, 2013
Planning grants for pediatricians to develop innovative, community-based initiatives that increase children's access to medical homes or to specific health services not otherwise available.
Scholarships
As part of our commitment to build a stronger, more empowered workforce, the National Council has partnered with USC to offer a $2,500 scholarship ($1,250 for advanced standing) for your employees when they enroll in the MSW@USC program in 2013.
Program Start Date Application Deadline
August 7, 2013 June 25, 2013
September 3, 2013 July 22, 2013
September 3, 2013 - Advanced Standing July 1, 2013
Your employees can request more information by clicking here. They should mention their National Council membership to admissions counselors to qualify for the scholarship.
You can also sign up here to request a special onsite or virtual information session just for your staff.
AHRQ Disseminating Patient Centered Outcomes Research to Improve Health Care Delivery
Application Deadline: September 27, 2013
Grants to leverage the capacities of existing broad-based networks of providers and other key stakeholders to disseminate and implement existing evidence for improving the quality of care delivery. Spread of evidence to support change in care delivery requires coordination, buy-in and active participation by diverse providers across multiple settings of care, collaboration with other key stakeholders (including payers and consumers) who are instrumental in shaping care delivery, and adaptation of interventions to local conditions. In recognition of these well-documented challenges and needs, this funding opportunity requires that applicants represent existing networks of providers and other stakeholders that have the knowledge, on-going relationships, expertise, infrastructures, past experience and understanding of local needs and constraints to maximize buy-in, collaboration, and appropriate adaptation to local conditions.
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Has your FQHC joined the
National Branding Campaign?
With more than 43 billion people eligible to enroll in private insurance starting this October 1, FQHCs strive to create an identifiable unifying identity for themselves. This is where the National Branding Campaign for Our Health Centers comes into place.
The campaign is a national branding effort to strengthen recognition of our Health Centers as a unified and nationwide network of quality community-based primary care providers. Initially created at the state level by the Pennsylvania Association of Community Health Centers (PACHC) and its membership, the National Association of Community Health Centers has expanded the campaign nationwide.
The FQHC Brand Components
MACHC recently hosted a Branding Webinar for MD and DE Health Centers with CEO of PACHC, Cheri Reinhart and Event and Communications Coordinator, Kirsten Keyes, as guest speakers. If you missed the webinar and would like access, please click here.
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Health Observances This Week
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JULY IS...UV Safety Month!!!
Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the United States. Ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun are the main cause of skin cancer. UV damage can also cause wrinkles and blotchy skin.
The good news? Skin cancer can be prevented! Communities, health professionals, and families can work together to prevent skin cancer.
Make a difference: Spread the word about strategies for preventing skin cancer and encourage communities, organizations, families, and individuals to get involved.
We can all use this month to raise awareness about skin cancer and help people take action to prevent it - both at home and in the larger community.
Here are just a few ideas:
- Encourage families to adopt good habits together, like wearing sunscreen and limiting their time in the sun.
- Motivate teachers and administrators to teach kids about the harm of UV rays and why it's important to protect yourself.
- Identify youth leaders in your community who can talk to their peers about taking steps to prevent skin cancer.
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4319 Forbes Blvd. Lanham, MD 20706 | www.machc.com | 301.577.0097
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