June 2, 2014
National Rip Current Awareness Week
June 1-7, 2014
June 1-7 is National Rip Current Awareness Week. As you and your family are enjoying the beach this summer, educate yourselves and others about the danger of rip currents. The National Weather Service has very informative materials, including videos, PSA’s, and rip current outlooks for lots of beach areas around the country.
In This Week’s Issue
Announcements
Trainings & Webinars
Funding Opportunities
SBIRT
Ask CHCACT!
Upcoming CHCACT Meetings
Resources
This Week in Health Policy News
Events/Educational Opportunities
Announcements
StayWell Health Center President & CEO Don Thompson was recently featured by the Connecticut Community Foundation. Click here to read about how he is paying forward the scholarship assistance he received during college.
Take Action Now: Access is the Answer Support Letter Collection. NACHC has a goal set for every Health Center to collect 5 letters of support from local elected officials and 10 letters of support from community partners. The local support letter drive is a crucial step in the Access is the Answer Campaign. Click here for more details.
Enroll America announces open registration for its first-ever national conference, June 16-18 in Washington, DC. The conference, called State of Enrollment: Getting America Covered, brings together key health coverage leaders from around the country to debrief on the first open enrollment period and hear from experts on all aspects of outreach and enrollment in Medicaid and the new health insurance marketplaces. Registration and details are available at stateofenrollment.org.
Send us your success stories! How are the outreach and enrollment efforts going at your health center? How many people have you helped so far? We’d love to know. Please send your success stories to ask@chcact.org.
Tweet of the Week
Now at @CTDPH launch of “Live Healthy CT.” Full house to hear re the coordinated chronic disease prevention plan! pic.twitter.com/7iR5xJJzNS
— CHCACT (@CTHealthCenters) May 28, 2014
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New on Get-Centered
Our New Get-Centered Blog entry features a video with Josh Clauser of UCONN Health Center and their new outreach website, snap4ct.org
SBIRT in Your Corner
The next Health Educator training starts June 9 at CHCACT.
And, learn more about CT SBIRT here!
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Trainings & Webinars
Community Health Partners for Sustainability – SBIRT in Urban FQHC’s. This webinar on Friday June 6, 2014 from 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM will discuss a randomized clinical trial of a brief intervention (SBIRT) against a 2-6 session intervention of brief treatment in three urban federally qualified healthcare centers (FQHCs), focusing on screening and onsite brief intervention / brief treatment. Our presenters will discuss appropriate substance use screeners, compare multiple SBIRT interventions, and explain the SBIRT implementation process for a primary care team including patient flow and job duties. Click here for more details and to register.
COPE (Collaborative Opioid Prescribing Education) for REMS. Prescribing opioids safely ultimately depends on the trust between prescriber and patient. Training can enhance trust by improving communication and collaborative skills. COPE-REMS is an interactive, self-paced, online training developed at the University of Washington-Seattle. This no-cost, online CME course is aimed at opioid prescribing providers—including physicians, registered nurses, ARNPs, physician assistants, psychologists—and other care managers who are involved in treating patients with chronic pain. Click here for more information.
NACHC is offering a series of webinars for FQHC and PCA staff dedicated to Human Resources every Wednesday, May 7 through June 11, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM. The next in the series is called “HR’s Role in Compliance with Health Center Program Requirements.” Registration for each webinar is open through Monday each week. Click here for more information.
CT Community Care, Inc (CCCI) is offering trainings to become leaders of Live Well Workshops, which teach individuals chronic disease self-management skills. Health centers are great locations for Live Well group sessions! Trainings will occur June 4, 6 ,11 and 13 in Wethersfield, from 8:30-4:30 each day. Contact Deb Smith at CCCI to register: 860-314-2205.
The CT Department of Public Health announces Programa de Manejo Personal de la Diabetes, a program designed to help empower Spanish-speaking persons with diabetes to build self-confidence and to better manage their diabetes. Training dates are June 5-6. More information and requirements can be found here.
Healthy Food Action. Transforming Community Food: Stories from the Ground Up. June 9, 2014 at 3:00 PM. Community food projects have been an important tool for changing the community food environment, and helping prevent food food-related disease epidemics such as diabetes and heart disease. Since 2011, the CDC’s Community Transformation Grants program has supported American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, Hmong, Hispanic, black and many other communities doing this work through over $170 million in grants. Members of 3 distinct communities in Alaska, California and Massachusetts that were recipients of CTG support tell their stories of food systems change. They’ll talk about success thus far, and the many challenges that remain as residents tackle food justice, community, and health inequity. Click here for more details.
The CT Mobile Integrated Healthcare Summit will be held Tuesday, June 10, 7:30 AM – 5:00 PM at the CCSU Institute of Technology and Business Development in New Britain. Full details can be found here.
SAMHSA-HRSA Center for Integrated Health Solutions – Building Organizational Infrastructure to Treat Chronic Pain and Prevent Abuse of Prescription Medications. Thursday June 5, 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention classifies prescription drug abuse as an epidemic. At the same time, more than 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain, and many do not receive adequate treatment or the appropriate options for managing pain. How can health centers and other primary care safety-net provider organizations play a vital role in achieving the balance between appropriate pain management and preventing abuse of prescription medications? For more information and to register, click here.
Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Behavioral Health Integration: A Key Step Towards the Triple Aim. It’s no secret that behavioral health and physical health are inseparable — when patients have both behavioral health and chronic medical conditions they experience poorer outcomes and higher costs than patients with a medical condition alone. Integrating behavioral health and primary care is a key component of the Triple Aim, leading to better outcomes, better patient experience of care, and lower per capita costs, particularly for patients with multiple chronic conditions. Begins August 14, 2014. Details are available here.
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Funding Opportunities
REMINDER from HRSA: There are several critical actions you must take to ensure competitive Health Center Program applications can be submitted successfully. First, your organization must have an active SAM.gov registration at the time of application submission. Second, you must have an active AOR (Authorized Organization Representative) in Grants.gov that is approved to submit an application. As a matter of HHS grants policy, without a current SAM.gov registration and a registered AOR, your application will be rejected in grants.gov without further consideration.
Click here to view all of HRSA’s open funding opportunities.
Minority AIDS Initiative Continuum of Care Pilot – Integration of HIV Prevention and Medical Care into Mental Health and Substance Abuse Treatment Programs for Racial/Ethnic Minority Populations at High Risk for Behavioral Health Disorders and HIV. Application deadline: Wednesday, June 4, 2014. Click here more details.
CDC: Partnerships to Improve Community Health (PICH). The Partnerships to Improve Community Health (PICH) funding opportunity announcement supports implementation of evidenced- and practice-based strategies that address previously-identified community gaps and needs within a defined jurisdiction to reduce the prevalence of chronic disease and related risk factors. Letter of Intent Deadline: June 5, 2014. Click here for full details.
The Office of Minority Health has released MP-CPI-14-003 to support organizations identify and assist minority populations, to educate them about the Health Insurance Marketplace (Marketplace) and to assist them with enrollment, completion of the application to determine their eligibility and purchase of health insurance offered through the Marketplace. Application deadline: June 16, 2014. Full details are available here.
The Aetna Foundation announces the opening of its 2014 Regional Grants Program – GoLocal: Cultivating Healthy Communities. This grant program will help to support initiatives that encourage healthy eating and active living, particularly within low-income, underserved and minority communities. Grants will be awarded for $25,000 and $50,000 over two cycles, April 10, 2014 – June 5, 2014 and June 16, 2014 – July 30, 2014. Visit the Aetna Foundation website for more information.
Ask CHCACT!
“Ask CHCACT,” a new advice column, will feature questions from health center staff, answered by your favorite CHCACT staff members! For the first several months, the column will focus exclusively on Outreach & Enrollment. Send your questions to ask@chcact.org! Ask CHCACT columns are also archived on the Outreach & Enrollment Resources section of the CHCACT web site. This site is now available to the public, with no log-in requirement!
Will Simmons answers this week’s question:
Will Simmons, Community HealthCorps Member, answers this week’s question.
Q: Last week you mentioned exemptions to the penalty? What are those and how do I go about applying for them?
A: You can be exempted for a number of reasons (and the list keeps getting longer), and there are two general categories: those that you have to apply for through Access Health CT, and those that you apply for or are granted automatically when you file your taxes for 2014 in April 2015. The most common exemptions are your insurance is unaffordable (>8% of income), you aren’t required to file taxes because of your income, you aren’t lawfully present, or you had a gap of insurance of less than three months. However, below is the full list, grouped by how you apply for the exemption (AHCT or IRS).
If you fit into any one of these exemption categories, you should fill out Access Health’s application for exemption located here
(if this link is dead, go to AccessHealthCT.com and click the “Can I Opt Out?” button in the lower right)
If you are a member of a recognized religious sect whose members object to insurance
If you are a member of a Health Care Sharing Ministry (this exemption can also be claimed when filing your taxes)
If you are a member of a federally recognized Indian Tribe (this exemption can also be claimed when filing your taxes)
If you are incarcerated (not awaiting disposition of charges) (this exemption can also be claimed when filing your taxes)
Coverage available through the marketplace is unaffordable because the minimum amount you would have to pay for premiums is more than 8% of your income.
To apply for this exemption you will need to apply for insurance through AccessHealthCT.com and attach the eligibility determination notice.
If you experienced a hardship that affected your ability to purchase insurance, possible hardship exemption circumstances might include (note some hardships can only be claimed when filing your federal income tax return):
You were homeless, were evicted in the past 6 months or were facing eviction of foreclosure, received a shut-off notice, recently experienced domestic violence, recently experienced the death of a close family member, experienced a fire, flood, or other disaster which cause substantial property damage, bankruptcy in the last 6 months, had medical expenses you couldn’t pay in the last 24 months, experienced unexpected increases in necessary expenses due to caring for an ill, disabled, or aging family member, or some other hardship
Your insurance plan was cancelled and you believe other Marketplace plans are unaffordable
You claim a child as a dependent who was denied Medicaid/CHIP and someone else is under a court order to support the child (this would exempt you from paying the child’s penalty
A taxpayer whose gross income is below the return filing requirement, but claims a dependent who must file a return and whose income pushes the household above the filing requirement may claim an exemption (but this is done on your taxes, not through AHCT)
A family for whom employer self-only coverage is affordable, but for whom the aggregate employer-sponsored family coverage cost is unaffordable may claim an exemption (but this is claimed on your federal taxes, not through AHCT).
If you fit into any of these exemption categories you will not need to apply for an exemption with AHCT
Your income is low enough that you are not required to file taxes
You had a gap in coverage of less than three months (dealt with when you file your taxes)
You are not lawfully present in the U.S. (dealt with when you file your taxes)
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Upcoming CHCACT Meetings
“Coffee and En-Rolls” – a bi-weekly meeting for Certified Application Counselors (CACs) and their supervisors, facilitated by CHCACT consultant Fran Freer and AmeriCorps member Will Simmons. Join us every other Thursday @ 9:00 am to share Best Practices and hear the latest news about Access Health CT and enrollment: 888-994-2509, participant passcode 519603#. (Please note new number). Upcoming dates: June 5.
ICD-10 Financial Workgroup – CHCACT will be holding this workgroup on a bimonthly basis to discuss training, technical assistance and support to the FQHCs as they work towards the implementation of ICD-10 in the fall of 2015. The first meeting will be on June 3, 2014 from 3:00 – 4:00 PM in the CHCACT conference room (100 Great Meadow Road, Suite 400, Wethersfield, CT 06109). Please contact Katie Henley with any questions.
ICD-10 Clinical Workgroup – CHCACT will be holding this workgroup on a bimonthly basis to discuss training, technical assistance and support to the FQHCs as they work towards the implementation of ICD-10 in the fall of 2015. The first meeting will be on June 4, 2014 from 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM in the CHCACT conference room (100 Great Meadow Road, Suite 400, Wethersfield, CT 06109). Please contact Katie Henley with any questions.
All CHCACT Staff can be reached by calling 860.667.7820.
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This Week in Health Policy News
Here is a sampling of health policy news from around the state. If you see something in your local newspaper that you would like featured here in future weeks, please contact Deb Polun at dpolun@chcact.org.
State Health News
6.2.14 Hartford Business Journal: New Collaborative Takes Aim at Avoidable Medical Tests
6.2.14 Hartford Business Journal: New UConn Facility Offers Blueprint for Patient-Centered Care
5.31.14 CT Health I-Team: State Restrains Psychiatric Patients at High Rate
5.30.14 CT Mirror: Bill Could Encourage Warm Handoff for Mental Health Treatment in CT
5.30.14 WNPR: In Connecticut a Summit to Explore and Possibly Expand Narcan Use
5.28.14 WNPR: Connecticut Doctors Urged to Be Prudent in Prescribing Antibiotics
5.27.14 CT Mirror: State Regulators Did Little To Curb Aetna Hikes
Health Reform/ACA
5.30.14 Kaiser Health News: Most Americans Say Health Law Has Not Affected Their Families
5.30.14 Hartford Business Journal: Access Health to Have Summer Concert Presence
5.28.14 CT Mirror: How Much Did Medicaid Grow Under Obamacare?
5.28.14 CT Mirror: CT Medicaid Enrollment at Record High Under Obamacare
National/Other Health News
6.2.14 CT Post: Senate to Take Up New VA Bill After Scandal
6.2.14 Hartford Courant: E-Cigarette Ads Seen by US Youth On the Rise
5.30.14 NPR: How a Well-Designed Doctor’s Office Could Help Patients
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Resources
Key Findings from the 2013 Kaiser Women’s Health Survey –The 2013 Kaiser Women’s Health Survey addresses a wide range of topics that are at the heart of women’s health care as a result of the ACA. The findings presented in this report examine women’s coverage, access, and affordability to care, as well as their connections to health providers and use of preventive services. The report can be found here.
The National Institute for Children’s Health Quality has developed a free, interactive Collaborative Action Now to Defeat Obesity (CAN DO) Playbook. Details are available here.
SAMHSA has released a helpful Behavioral Health Barometer. It contains data that you may find useful for grants and reports. It is available on their website here.
The PBRN Resource Center is pleased to announce the recent launch of a PBRN Playlist on the AHRQ Primary Care YouTube Channel. This playlist contains video recordings of national webinars hosted by the AHRQ PBRN Resource Center. The channel and all recordings can be accessed here.
ECRI Institute announces new resources for Credentialing and Privileging Non-Physician Providers and Staff. Credentialing is not just for physicians and other clinical providers. HRSA Policy Information Notice (PIN) 2002-22 states that health centers must credential any individual who is required to be licensed, registered, or certified by the state, commonwealth, or territory in which the health center is located. This list includes, but is not limited to, licensed independent practitioners (LIPs) (e.g., physicians, dentists, nurse practitioners, nurse midwives) as well as other licensed or certified personnel such as registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, physician’s assistants, laboratory technicians, social workers, medical assistants, dental hygienists, and nutritionists. The list should include locum tenens and volunteers as well. Click here to read their Get Safe! announcement and access their checklists and other resources.
The SAMHSA-HRSA Center for Integrated Health Solutions Telebehavioral Health Training and Technical Assistance Series is designed to help safety net providers and rural health clinics understand and adopt telebehavioral health services. The implementation of telehealth services for mental health and substance abuse allows for increased access to these services, particularly in rural or underserved areas. The 6-session training will provide health centers with the tools/resources necessary to identify and implement a telebehavioral health program. Learn more here.
The American College of Physicians (ACP) has launched a High Value Care Coordination Toolkit intended to improve communication about referrals between primary care and subspecialist providers. The toolkit includes a checklist of information that must be provided in a generic referral to a subspecialist, a checklist of information that must be provided in a subspecialist’s response to a referral request, model care coordination agreement templates between several providers and care settings, and an outline of recommendations to providers that can help them prepare patients for referral using a patient- and family-centered approach.
Birth to 5: Watch Me Thrive! – HHS and the Administration for Children and Families has launched Birth to 5: Watch Me Thrive! to encourage healthy child development, universal development and behavioral screening for children, and support for the families and providers who care for them.
Scope of Project Webpage: HRSA has released a new “Scope of Project” Page on the BPHC website. This page provides a “one-stop-shop” for Health Center Program Scope of Project and Change-in-Scope policy, process, and resources. View the new Scope of Project webpage.
New Rural Mental Health and Substance Abuse Toolkit Launched. The Rural Assistance Center, University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center, and the NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis launched this toolkit, designed to help rural communities and organizations develop and implement programs that meet the targeted mental health needs of communities based on proven approaches and strategies.
ECRI has developed Asthma Care for the Pediatric Patient. Asthma is a challenging, common, chronic childhood illness associated with significant school absenteeism, emergency department visits, and hospital admissions. Racial and ethnic disparities in both asthma management and outcomes put safety net populations at particular risk. This self-assessment checklist will help healthcare providers assess and develop a patient-focused asthma treatment plan.
Check out the This Week in CHCACTion! Resources Archive on the CHCACT web site here! It’s chock full of webinars and other informative resources compiled from our weekly bulletins. You can also visit a password-protected FQHCs Resources Library which includes a message board to facilitate communication across centers. To gain access to the FQHC Resources, contact Deb Polun, at dpolun@chcact.org.
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Events/Educational Opportunities
Click here to view our full events calendar. Click here for NACHC Seminars/Conferences/Webcasts.
Welcome to our new events calendar! The calendar is updated on a regular basis with upcoming events, webinars, educational opportunities, outreach activities and more. You can sort the calendar by category and subscribe to calendar updates by clicking here.
Agenda
Agenda
Day
Month
Week
Categories
CHCACT event
community/outreach
conference
local event
meeting
national event
tobacco
webinar
workshop/training
Tags
aca
access health ct
aco
adolescent health
advocacy
ahec
ahrq
aids
ambulatory care
antibiotics
baltimore
behavioral health
benefit
berlin
bloomfield
bod
boston
bphc
bridgeport
cancer
care management
ccpa
cdc
charter oak
chcact
child health
childhood obesity
children
chip
chronic disease
chs
chwc
cifc
citizen corps
cms
community healthcorps
connecticut
corps community day
cromwell
ct dph
ct health
ct nonprofits
cultural competence
danbury
danielson
data
dental
development
diabetes
dot
dph
east hartford
ecri
education
ehb
ehr
emergency preparedness
enrollment
esrd
exchange
fair haven
faith
families
farmington
fda
film screening
finance
fitness
florida
flu
fqhc
ftca
generations
genetics
grants
greenwich
groundbreaking
guilford
hamden
hands on hartford
hartford
hccn
hcsmct
health disparities
health equity
health extension
health it
healthy chat
healthy people 2020
hepatitis
hepatitis b
heroin
hhs
hipaa
hispanic health
hiv
holiday
homelessness
hospitals
housing
hrsa
human resources
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hurricane sandy
icd-10
illinois
immigration
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insurance
integration
joint commission
las vegas
leadership
lgbt
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