TN STATE LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM (TSLRP)
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TSLRP provides educational loan repayment to qualified primary care practitioners in exchange for an initial 2-year service obligation to practice full-time or part-time at an ambulatory public, non-profit or private non-profit primary care site located in a federally designated Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) or a facility designated as a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) or Rural Health Clinic (RHC).
Eligible Practitioners
- Primary Care: Physician, Nurse Practitioner, Certified Nurse Mid-Wife, Physician Assistant, Pharmacist
- Dental: General Practice or Pediatric Dentist
- Behavioral & Mental Health: Psychiatrist, Psychiatric Nurse Specialist, Health Service Psychologist, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Marriage & Family Therapist or Licensed Professional Counselor
Award Amount
Eligible applicants can receive a maximum of up to $50,000 for an initial 2-year service obligation. TSLRP award amounts are determined by annual funding availability which may cause variations in the final award amount from year-to-year.
The deadline to apply online is Tuesday, January 5, 2021 .
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Late-Season Flu Vaccines & COVID-19
TPCA has been collaborating with the Tennessee State Department of Health to ensure that CHCs receive CDC-supplied doses of the flu vaccine. Distribution has just begun and may continue through early January.
The flu season typically peaks between December and February but can extend as late as May. Health centers can play an important role to ensure that all patients have been immunized against the flu as the COVID-19 pandemic intensifies.
NACHC Finance Office Hours for Health Centers:
Strategies for Managing COVID-19
Wednesdays this fall from 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm ET
NACHC and partners at BKD, LLP have joined forces again to provide to provide timely information and resources to support health centers through this challenging time. Topics will change weekly to address real-time challenges based on health centers input and feedback.
Registration is free – sign up for one or more sessions today!
COVID-19 Resources Page
TPCA created a COVID-19 Resources page that contains information and tools for health centers and the general public on a variety of COVID-19 related topics including TPCA’s COVID-19 Updates, human resources & operations, telehealth, and PPE.
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State Budget
Governor Lee and his staff are currently considering all departmental budget requests and will balance those with expected state revenues to construct a FY 2022 budget.
TPCA Member Action Alert: Safety Net Funds Feedback
It will be critical to demonstrate the impact Safety Net funds are having for patients, health centers, and communities as the Governor weighs competing state priorities and limited dollars. Please review yesterday's TPCA Policy Update communication submitting your considerations.
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COVID-19 Legislation
Congress returned to Washington D.C. last week, but negotiations over another piece of COVID-19 relief legislation remain stalled. At minimum, Congress will have to pass legislation to keep the government funded past the December 11 deadline. when funding for the Community Health Center Program, National Health Service Corps, and Teaching Health Centers Program is also set to expire.
Access to 340B Medications at Risk
The 340B Drug Pricing Program is a critical program for health center patients, ensuring that they can obtain medications at affordable prices. Recently, several threats to the program have emerged that endanger the intended purpose of the 340B program and health centers’ ability to provide care to their patients. NACHC, Primary Care Associations, and community health centers across the country are talking with Members of Congress and HRSA, urging action to stop these damaging provisions from going into effect.
TPCA Engagement on 340B
- TPCA sent a letter to Tennessee's Attorney General outlining 340B developments and requesting that Attorney General Slatery collaborate with the Connecticut Attorney General, who is working with AGs across the country to address actions from drug manufacturers.
- TPCA submitted comments to the proposed rule to implement President Trump’s Executive Order on Insulin and EpiPens.
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TPCA submitted suggested improvements to the 340B program in response to a public information request from Senator Alexander and Congressman Walden.
- TPCA requested Tennessee’s members of the House of Representatives support for a bi-partisan letter to HHS expressing concerns about Kalderos’ recent actions to shift the 340B program to a rebate model.
NACHC Lawsuit Against HHS
NACHC filed a lawsuit against the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to compel HHS to implement a dispute resolution process for the 340B program that would allow health centers to take action against drug manufacturers for halting the shipment of 340B priced drugs to contract pharmacies.
Telling the CHC Story
Every community health center and Primary Care Association is invited to create a customized profile as part of the CHroniCles Project, an interactive, multimedia website dedicated to the living story of the health center movement and aims to honor the history of health centers across the country. If your health center doesn’t have a profile but is interested in creating one, please reach out to emily.waitt@tnpca.org and TPCA will help you set up a profile.
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Readiness to Train Assessment Tool™
The Readiness to Train Assessment Tool™ (RTAT™) is a survey instrument that allows health centers to assess their organization’s readiness to engage in health professions training programs.
The Workforce NTTAPs, Community Health Center, Inc. and the Weitzman Institute, would love to hear our community health center’s opinions about their readiness to engage in health professions training.
Every staff person in a health center has the expertise to offer valuable input. Every person is invited to complete an initial set of questions in this survey about the topic of general readiness to engage in health professions training. This is a very important topic as we plan for the future of workforce training. Please provide your input!
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Connectus Healthcare participates in Live out Love Health Fair at Plaza Mariachi!
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Connectus Health, along with the TN Department of Health, Urban League of Middle TN, and many other partners, joined the Hispanic Family Foundation for the Live out Love Health Fair on Saturday, November 14th.
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Neighborhood Health Partners with Second Harvest
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In close partnership with Second Harvest, Neighborhood Health opened six Food Pharmacies in late September 2020.
From the first food box distribution in September, through Veterans Day, Neighborhood Health staff and providers distributed food boxes and related food pharmacy items to 888 patients.
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ADDITIONAL NEWS & RESOURCES
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Share your news!
We want to help spread the word about what's going on at Tennessee's health centers.
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This publication is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $1,830,669, with 15 percent financed with non-governmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit HRSA.gov.
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