Maryland Community Health 
Resources Commission
November 25, 2019 | Issue 53
Larry Hogan, Governor 

Boyd K. Rutherford, Lieutenant Governor

Robert R. Neall, Health Secretary
CHRC Commissioners
Allan Anderson, MD, Chair
Elizabeth Chung, Vice Chair

Scott T. Gibson
J. Wayne Howard
Celeste James
Surina Jordan, PhD
Barry Ronan
Erica I. Shelton, MD
Ivy Simmons, PhD
Julie Wagner
Anthony C. Wisniewski
Mark Luckner, Executive Director
Events
The MDH Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities  

Health Equity Conference "Achieving Health Equity and Cost Reductions Through Clinical-Community Partnerships".

December 5, 2019, Martin's West, Baltimore, MD. 

The program will explore how the Total Cost of Care Model enables community organizations and hospitals to achieve cost savings and preventable utilization reductions, and successful partnerships and models that can be replicated to achieve health equity. Details on registration and agenda can be found   here
____________________

The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Summit on Primary Care.

April 16-18, 2020, Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, National Harbor, MD. 

The program is for health care professionals in a variety of settings who are committed to transforming primary care to ensure equitable care and achieve better outcomes. Registration and program details can be found  here .

CHRC NEWS
CHRC Call for Proposals generates 97 Letters of Intent requesting $42 million

The FY 2020 Call for Proposals issued by the CHRC in October generated 97 Letters of Intent (LOIs) requesting $42 million in funding. Of this total, 46 of 97 (47%) were submitted by applicants who have not received a grant from the CHRC in the past, and 21 (22%) of submitted LOIs were submitted by first-time applicants. 

Full grant proposals are due to the CHRC by noon on December 19, 2019. Grant awards are expected to be made by the CHRC in late February or early March 2020. The CHRC will award up to $6 million in new grant funding this fiscal year.
 
This year's Call for Proposals looks to support three categories of programs: 
 
(1)   Promoting delivery of essential health care services: primary/preventative care services, dental services, and women's health care services;
(2)   Addressing the heroin and opioid epidemic through integrated behavioral health service delivery; and
(3)   Promoting food security and efforts to address diabetes prevention and management.
 
The Commission will also solicit bids for independent proposal reviewers. More information about submitting reviewer bids can be found on the  CHRC website and on the Maryland eMarket website at  here

The State of Maryland may impose additional requirements on respondents, please review the procurement requirements here .
_____________________________________________
GRANTEE NEWS

Choptank Community Health 
celebrates the opening of their
new Community Health Center
in Denton.

Choptank Community Health celebrated the opening of their new Denton health center with a ribbon cutting ceremony on October 29, 2019. The new facility will allow Choptank to provide access to integrated primary, behavioral health, and dental services, all in one location.  The dental program is supported by a two-year grant for $240,000 from the CHRC. 
 
Left to right: Scott LeRoy, Caroline County Health Officer; Mark Luckner, Exec. Dir., CHRC; Susan Johnson, VP of QA and Pop.Health, Choptank Health; Wayne Howard, CHRC Commissioner.

The Choptank grant is one of 43 dental grants awarded by the CHRC totaling $8.6 million.  The programs have collectively served more than 67,000 individuals.  For more information about these programs click  here .

AHEC West's dental program 
receives  national acclaim

The dental access program of  Maryland Area Health Education  Center West (AHEC West) was  featured in an article posted on  the American Dental Association website.  You may view the article by clicking here.

AHEC West is a non-profit in A llegany  County which improves access to and promotes quality health care through education and collaboration. The dental access program provides oral health care services for low-income residents of Western Maryland who are in recovery from opioids and other addictions. Under the proposal, which is supported by a two-year  C HRC grant, AHEC West increases access to dental services that are provided by Federally Qualified Health Centers, public health departments and private dental offices. AHEC West also works with program participants to improved their overall health literacy and address social determinants of health. 

Susan Stewart, Exec. Director, AHEC West at MRHA Conference
The CHRC has awarded a number of grants to increase access to dental services in rural communities, which are impacted by a lack of providers, the need to travel great distance to access care, and other barriers.  The Maryland Rural Health Association (MRHA) issued a white paper that described the impact of CHRC-funded dental projects, which is accessible  here .


Chinese Culture and Community 
Service Center Launches
"No Pain Initiative"
 
The Chinese Culture and Community Service Center (CCACC), a nonprofit primary care provider in Montgomery County, recently received a two-year grant for $150,000 from the CHRC to support its "No Pain Initiative," which provides an integrated approach and reduces reliance on the use of opioids for chronic pain management. The program includes individual counseling, psychosocial support groups, acupuncture sessions, and a structured 6-week self-management workshop to empower patients to better manage their chronic pain and receive non-pharmacologic interventions. Participants can access other elements of individualized care, such as a review of their pain medications with a psychiatrist or a pharmacist, and care plan development to address co-occurring depression, anxiety or other psychosocial issues.
Left to right: Rebecca Floyd, Aetna Better Health of MD; Elizabeth Chung, CHRC Vice-Chair; Chih-Hsaing Li, Exec. Dir. CCACC; Mark Luckner, Exec. Dir. CHRC; Adelline Ntatin, Aetna Better Health of MD. 

The CHRC grant leveraged additional financial support
from Aetna Better Health of Maryland. Over the two
years of the program, CCACC projects providing pain
management services to 240 individuals. For more
information about CHRC grants that promote access to
integrated behavioral health services in the community,
click here.

_____________________________________________
IN THE NEWS
December is AIDS Awareness Month. For more information, click  here
_____________________________________________

December 1-7 is National Hand Washing Awareness Week.  For more information, click  here
_____________________________________________

MDH Press Release:  

Maryland Department of Health (MDH) Secretary Robert R. Neall issues a clinical reporting directive and order as the investigation of severe lung illnesses in Maryland continues.

Secretary Neall's clinical order and directive on reporting of E-cigarette or Vaping-Associated Lung Injury dated October 3, 2019, can be found  here.
_____________________________________________

Maryland Department of Health releases first statewide diabetes action plan with intervention strategies to engage partners 
 
In conjunction with National Diabetes Month, the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) released its first Diabetes Action Plan on November 21, 2019, to help reduce the burden of diabetes in Maryland.

MDH officials announced the plan during the day-long Diabetes is Primary education conference for 200 physicians and health care professionals organized by the Maryland Chapter of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) at the Hyatt Regency Inner Harbor in Baltimore.

During the meeting, MDH Secretary Robert R. Neall 
said the goal of the action plan is to spur increased collaboration with partners throughout the state, employing detailed strategies and educating the public about the disease. MDH will involve local health departments and providers from the public and private sectors. Deputy Secretary of Public Health Fran Phillips highlighted aspects of the 65-page plan, which includes a resource guide, comprehensive data about risk factors and specific intervention strategies. Mark Luckner, Executive Director of the CHRC, said the Commission will support the plan through grant funding to organizations that serve vulnerable populations and address the social determinants impacting diabetes. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 30 million Americans have diabetes. In Maryland, 10.5 percent of adults have diabetes (nearly 500,000) and 34 percent have pre-diabetes (approximately 1.6 million) which ranks Maryland as one of 25 states with the highest diabetes prevalence rates.  To review the MDH Diabetes Action Plan, go here.
.
Maryland Department of Health launches portal to give parents access to vaccination records online.
The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) today announced a new portal that will enable Maryland residents to access vaccination records online at no cost. Users will be able to view and print official copies of their vaccination records, and those of their family members, on demand without an additional request to a health care provider.     

MD.MyIR.net is part of a pilot program funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Chief Technology Officer. The portal is linked to ImmuNet, the state's immunization information system, where health care practitioners upload and store vaccination records.
 
Using a simple, one-time registration process, users can create an account via  MD.MyIR.net, with the option to add family members. After the account is activated, users are able to view and print official copies of their vaccination records. The records will be accepted by schools, daycare facilities, camps, employers, state agencies and other organizations that require proof of immunization.
 
The system is HIPAA compliant and records are only available to authorized users. To access the MD.MyIR site click  here.
_____________________________________________

Maryland Community Health Worker (CHW) Certification Update - November 14, 2019

The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) is now accepting certification applications for experienced CHWs through March 31, 2020. There is no fee to apply for certification.  Eligibility requirements for experienced CHWs to apply for certification include:
  • Occupied as a CHW on October 1, 2018;
  • Be 18 years old or older;
  • Have 2,000 hours of CHW paid or volunteer experience;
  • Be proficient in Maryland's CHW core competencies; and
  • Two letter of validation forms from a current or former employer, supervisor or agency representative.
Certification for CHWs is voluntary. You may continue to work as a CHW without being certified.

For more information about certification, full eligibility requirements and application instructionsclick  here.