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UPCOMING EVENTS
TTAG January Conference Call
January 13, 2016
National Indian Health Board Meeting
January 20-21, 2016
Washington, DC
Tribal Self Governance Advisory Committee Meeting
January 27-28, 2016
Washington, DC
Direct Service Tribes Advisory Committee Meeting
February 2-3, 2016
Parker, AZ
FY 2018 IHS National IHS Budget Formulation Work Session
February 11-12, 2016
Washington DC
Secretary's Tribal Advisory Committee Meeting
March 1-2, 2016
Washington, DC
7th Annual NIHB Tribal Public Health Summit
April 11-13, 2016
Atlanta, GA
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In This Issue
In this week's Washington Report: NIHB Board to Meet in Washington DC for First Quarterly Meeting of 2016 on January 21-22; and Save the Dates for the 7th Annual Tribal Public Health Summit. IHS Sends Letter on Contract Support Costs; New CMS Grant Opportunity for Social Services- Accountable Health Communities; Deadline for February 1st Coverage is January 15th; ECP Petition Submission Deadline Extended until January 15th; HHS Secretary's Tribal Advisory Committee Vacancy Announcement; CDC Draft Opioid Prescribing Guideline is Now Available for Public comment; and an IHS job announcement.
Administration and Organizational Updates
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NIHB Board to Meet in Washington DC
The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) will hold its first quarterly meeting of 2016 on January 21-22, 2016 in Washington, DC. During the meeting the board will meet with federal agency officials, partner organizations, and Congressional staff. The board will also consider NIHB's 2016 Legislative and Policy Agenda. On Friday, January 22, NIHB will hold a discussion on Creating a National Tribal Public Health Institute at NIHB.
The meeting will be held at the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center on the campus of Gallaudet University located at 800 Florida Avenue, NE in Washington, DC.
If you'd like more information about the Board meeting please contact Liz Burman at [email protected].
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Save the Dates for the 7th
Annual Tribal Public Health Summit!
The National Indian Health Board invites Tribal leaders, health directors, public health professionals, researchers, and community-based service providers to the 7th Annual National Tribal Public Health Summit taking place on April 11-13, 2016 in Atlanta, GA.
Click here to nominate someone for the Public Health Innovation Award. The deadline for nominations is March 4.
To view information about registration, including rates: click here.
Host Hotel: Hilton Atlanta: 255 Courtland St NE, Atlanta, GA 30303 Phone: (404) 659-2000
A special room rate of $149.00/night has been negotiated with the host hotel. We encourage attendees to make a room reservation as soon as possible, as the room block will only be open for a limited amount of time.
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Administration and Organizational Updates
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IHS Sends Letter on Contract Support Costs
On January 7, 2016 the Indian Health Service (IHS) sent a letter to Tribal Leaders to initiate a consultation on the IHS Contract Support Costs (CSC) policy. The letter notes that IHS will be working with the CSC Workgroup to develop a policy that will be available for review and comment by Tribes.
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New CMS Grant Opportunity - Accountable Health Communities
On January 5, 2016 a new Affordable Care Act (ACA) large grant funding opportunity titled "Accountable Health Communities" was released through the Department of Health and Human Services for organizations to link patients with social services they may need.
The Accountable Health Communities grant program is a five year pilot project with grant funds up to $157 million from CMS designed to test whether the screening of beneficiaries for health-related social needs and associated referral and navigation services is an effective way of increasing quality of care and reducing costs in Medicare and Medicaid.
The idea behind this opportunity is that social issues such as housing instability, hunger, and interpersonal violence can affect a person's health care and lead to increased costs over time. Under the pilot project, the award recipients will be screen beneficiaries for unmet social and behavioral needs and provide coordination with existing community-based services to meet those needs. The application letter of intent must be filed by February 8, 2016 then the application must be submitted by March 31, 2016.
To view the CMS grant opportunity type in "Accountable Health Communities" in the keyword search bar here.
The Washington Post published a news article regarding the CMS Accountable Health Communities grant program, to view the article click here.
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Deadline for February 1st Coverage is January 15th!
The deadline to enroll in a healthcare plan or make changes to an existing plan effective February 1, 2016 is January 15, 2016. Register now on www.healthcare.gov. Enrollment for most Americans closes January 31, 2016 and a higher penalty will be charged to those without coverage.
Members of federally recognized tribes have a special monthly enrollment status that allows them to enroll throughout the year. It is important for AI/AN individuals and families to learn about their insurance options and get covered. Not only do the individuals benefit from insurance but it also helps Indian Health Service facilities, Tribal 638 and urban clinics as well. Through third party billing, these resources become more available to everyone because those Purchased and Referred Care dollars go right back into the facilities.
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HHS Secretary's Tribal Advisory Committee Vacancy Announcement
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary's Tribal Advisory Committee (STAC) currently has vacancies. The STAC was established in 2010 by HHS in an effort to create a coordinated, Department-wide strategy to incorporate tribal guidance on HHS priorities, policies, and budget.
The STAC's Tribal representation is comprised of seventeen positions: one delegate (and one alternate) from each of the twelve Indian Health Service (IHS) areas and one delegate (and one alternate) for the five National At-Large Members positions. Vacancies include a primary delegate and an alternate from each of the following regions as well as three National At-Large delegate vacancies and one National At-Large Alternate vacancy. Those selected will serve a two-year term. The vacancies open for nomination are:
- Albuquerque Area
- Bemidji Area
- California Area
- Nashville Area
- Oklahoma Area
- Portland Area
- National At-Large Primary Delegate (3)
- National At-Large Alternate
All nominees must either be elected or appointed Tribal officials acting in their official capacity as elected officials of their Tribes, or be designated by an elected Tribal official with the designee having authority to act on behalf of the Tribal official. Nominations must be made by an elected or appointed official from a federally recognized Tribe acting in his or her official capacity.
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CDC Draft Opioid Prescribing Guideline is Now Available for Public Comment
CDC is developing an opioid prescribing guideline to help primary care providers offer safer, more effective care for patients with chronic pain and help reduce misuse, abuse, and overdose from these drugs. The guideline will provide recommendations to primary care providers about the appropriate prescribing of opioid pain medications to improve pain management and patient safety. Recommendations focus on the use of opioids in treating chronic pain (i.e., pain lasting longer than three months or past the time of normal tissue healing). The guideline is not intended for patients who are in active cancer treatment, palliative care, or end-of-life care.
CDC's draft Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain, 2016 is now available at www.Regulations.gov for review and comment. The public comment period opened, December 14, 2015 and closes January 13, 2016. Please submit all comments and feedback at www.Regulations.gov. Enter the docket number (CDC-2015-0112) to access the docket.
Please note: The full draft Guideline is one of several documents listed in the docket on Regulations.gov. Here is a direct link to the draft Guideline PDF.
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Job Announcement: Indian Health Service Office of Tribal Self Governance
The Indian Health Service (IHS) has announced the following job opportunities for a Policy Analyst in the Office of Tribal Self-Governance. Open period is:
Thursday, December 24, 2015 to Monday, January 25, 2016.
Please access the announcement on USA Jobs:
The IHS of Tribal Self-Governance (OTSG) is located in the Office of the Director at IHS Headquarters in Rockville, MD and reports to the Deputy Director or Director, OTSG. The OTSG (1) Develops and oversees the implementation of Tribal self-governance legislation and authorities in the IHS, under Title V of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, Public Law 93-638, as amended; (2) develops and recommends policies, administrative procedures, and guidelines for IHS Tribal self-governance activities, with maximum input from IHS staff and workgroups, Tribes and Tribal organizations, and the Tribal Self-Governance Advisory Committee. (Please visit their website for more information. (www.ihs.gov/selfgovernance).
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