Member Spotlight

Outreach Receives Advocacy Center of Excellence Recognition Congratulations to Sabrina Howze and staff at Outreach Health Services for being recognized as an Advocacy Center of Excellence – Silver Status from the National Association of Community Health Centers.

Register Now: Policy and Issues Forum (P&I)  March 16-19, 2020 in Washington, D.C. presented by NACHC Community Health Center professionals and leaders are registering now to attend one of the largest national conferences focused on primary care and health policy. In addition to educational sessions and committee meetings, clinicians, executives, administrators, consumers, board members, and advocates make appointments with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to promote the impact of health centers. Registration for the P&I and other information can be found  here . To download the P&I conference mobile app, follow the instructions found  here . Mark Your Calendars 3/4 --  P&I Prep Webinar - All Advocates/All Locations (2:00 p.m. CST)    3/5 –  Unity for Community Webinar  (2:00 p.m. CST)    3/11 – NEW!  Consumer Board Member Advocacy Webinar  (2:00 p.m. CST)  3/18 – National Day of Action  Hill Day Page Unity For Community Health Day Page National Call-In Day

Retention Academy Applications Due March 6th The Association of Clinicians for the Underserved’s Star2 Center is seeking C-Suite and management staff from 25 Community Health Centers interested in participating in the 3rd annual Retention Academy. Health Center leaders will discuss and implement scalable strategies to increase health center workforce retention. This link provides registration and program content information. Applications are due by 9:00 p.m. CST, March 6, 2020. Accepted cohort members will be notified by Wednesday, March 11, 2020.

Loan Repayment Applications Open through April 23rd The Division of National Health Service Corps opened its application for three loan repayment programs: the NHSC Loan Repayment Program (NHSC LRP), the NHSC Substance Use Disorder Workforce Loan Repayment Program (NHSC SUD Workforce LRP) and the NHSC Rural Community Loan Repayment Program .  The application closes on Thursday, April 23, 2020, at 6:30 p.m. CST. Visit the NHSC website to learn more about eligibility and specific disciplines. Learn more by watching this video that outlines discipline eligibility for the SUD Workforce LRP, and Rural Community LRP.

FY 2020 Ending the HIV Epidemic-Primary Care HIV Prevention Supplemental Funding Technical Assistance Grants Awarded to Mississippi CHCs   Congratulations to the following health centers for the recent HRSA grant awards: Aaron E. Henry Community Health Services Center; Coastal Family Health Center; Delta Health Center; Family Health Center; G.A. Carmichael Family Health Center, and Southeast Mississippi Rural Health Initiative. Robin Boyles, chief program planning and development officer with the Delta Health Center Inc. in Mound Bayou, said the funds are much needed. "We are one of the only areas of the country that has not seen declines in HIV because we have not been as aggressive in our prevention of HIV," she said.

Boyles said the grant will allow the clinic to engage in community education — destroying myths and stigma around the disease. "This will really allow us to focus on preventing HIV — to identify our patients that could benefit being on prep (drugs that prevent HIV)," she said. She also hopes to get more HIV positive people in the door.  "If we can test and diagnose before they have symptoms — we can treat them and prevent them from spreading it to other people," she said. Grant amounts to the six Mississippi CHCs ranged from $256,457 to $271,240.

Training Offered through March 2020 Ending the HIV Epidemic Click Here

Rule: Title 23: Medicaid, Part 201: Transportation Services, Chapter 1: Emergency Transportation Services, Rule 1.6: Documentation. Summary: This Administrative Code filing is being submitted to remove the prior authorization requirement for emergency ambulance transportation. For the full text, click here . Rule: Title 23: Medicaid, Part 200: General Provider Information, Chapter 4: Provider Enrollment, Rule 4.2: Conditions of Participation. This Administrative Code is being filed to include language allowing the Division of Medicaid to disenroll out-of-state providers that do not bill the Division of Medicaid within a three (3) year period,

except for certain providers as determined by the Division of Medicaid. This Administrative Code is being filed to add language requiring providers to verify with the NET Broker that non-emergency transportation is used for Medicaid covered services only. For full text, click  here .

USDA Seeks Applications for Technical Assistance and Training Grants USDA is making grants available under the  Community Facilities Technical Assistance and Training Grant Program . These grants help rural communities with limited resources and staff access USDA funding for essential community facilities. Eligible recipients are public entities, private nonprofit organizations, and federally recognized tribes. Funding priority will be made to organizations that have experience providing technical assistance and training to rural entities. Funds may be used to help rural communities identify financial resources, improve community facilities management functions, and prepare reports, surveys, and applications.

Training Opportunities

Transitioning Best Practice to Clinical Integration

Register Here

March 6, 2020 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Holiday Inn, Pearl, Miss. CHCAMS Members - $79.00 Non Members -$99.00 Register now for the CHCAMS one-day spring clinical conference. This conference is designed especially for the community health center multi-disciplinary care teams that work to enhance primary care capacity with the goal of improved patient outcomes and integrated care across the primary care continuum. The CHCAMS spring clinical conference sessions will focus on special population programs, initiatives, and evidence-based guidelines designed to improve primary care capacity and patient outcomes.

Training for New Clinical Directors Core knowledge and competencies that all health center clinical directors need to function as effective managers, leaders, and advocates for their health centers and communities are presented at this workshop. In addition to providing contextual knowledge regarding the history, terminology, political evolution, and regulatory expectations of the Health Center Movement, course content also focuses on developing competencies in evolving healthcare issues.   View Brochure

March 14 – 15, 2020 Washington, D.C. Held in conjunction with NACHC’s Policy and Issues Forum Register Here

Professional Development Program Offered to Support AIDS Service Organizations A 16-week course for those who seek knowledge, skills, and values needed to establish and manage community-based, non-profit AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) service organizations (ASOs) begins April 3, 2020. The courses will be held at the University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg campus Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings every other week. The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) School of Social Work is collaborating with the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) and the Mississippi Alliance of Nonprofits and Philanthropy to offer this training. For additional information, visit this  link .

Webinars March 6 noon - 1 p.m. CST Prepare Not Panic: COVID-19 CDC Update and the Health Center Response The webinar will provide information on how health centers can: continue to prepare an organized response to COVID-19 share clinical protocols nationwide  and build systems in partnership with federal, state authorities, local public health departments, and community stakeholders to boost the health center response strategy. The webinar is in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Coronavirus Response Task Force. Register here.

Thursday, March 5 Promising Practices on Addressing Stigma and HIV in Primary Care Settings 2:00-3:00 p.m. CST Register here Tuesday, March 10 Patient Safety Awareness Week: Achieving Safe and Reliable Health Care noon - 1:30 p.m. CST Join the webcast the day of the session Call-in: 888-795-3252 Passcode: 3284388

Thursday, March 26 Reaching 80%: A Health Center Discussion on Colorectal Cancer Screening 1:00-2:00 p.m. CST Register here

News To Use

CDC director: More person-to-person coronavirus infections in U.S. likely, but containment still possible CDC confirms the first US coronavirus case of 'unknown' origin.

Flu activity remains elevated in Mississippi: not too late for flu vaccination Walmart continues expansion into Healthcare

Funding Opportunities

HRSA recently hosted a grant writing webinar. The recording for “Creating a Competitive Grant Proposal” is available here .

Deadline: April 24, 2020 Rural Communities Opioid Response Program Notice of Funding Opportunity HRSA recently released the  Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) notice of funding opportunity  (HRSA-20-031). HRSA plans to award approximately 89 grants to rural communities as part of this funding opportunity. Applications are due by Friday, April 24, in  Grants.gov . Successful  RCORP-Implementation  award recipients will receive $1 million for three years of performance to enhance and expand substance use disorder (SUD), including opioid use disorder (OUD), service delivery in high-risk rural communities. They will implement a set of core SUD/OUD prevention, treatment, and recovery activities that align with the  HHS Five-Point Strategy to Combat the Opioid Crisis . Deadline: March 9, 2020 Service Area Competition Notice of Funding Opportunity Released for September 1 Starts   HRSA released the fiscal year 2020 Service Area Competition (SAC) Notice of Funding Opportunity, HRSA-20-100. This competition is for service areas with a September 1 project period start date (current project period end date of August 31). Applications are due in  Grants.gov  by 10:59 p.m. CST Monday, March 9, and in HRSA’s Electronic Handbooks by 4:00 p.m. CST, Wednesday, April 8. Technical assistance (TA) materials are available on the  SAC TA webpage .

Grants with Ongoing Deadlines COMPASS Initiative Core Grants are made to community-based organizations that prioritize HIV/AIDS prevention and/or care services across the southern United States. Funding may be used for a variety of organizational and staff resources, including technology and software, meeting space costs, conference attendance fees, professional development, and continuing education. For more info, click here. COMPASS Initiative SPARK! Community-led campaigns and education initiatives across the deep south that work to reduce stigma and focused on changing knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors around HIV and AIDS. For more info, click  here.  Entergy Micro Grant s Grants for projects that effectively impact arts and culture, community improvement/enrichment, education and literacy, the environment, and healthy families. For more info, click here . Foundation For the Mid South Grants for organizations in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi working in the areas of health disparities, physical health, mental health, education, financial security, and the growth and prosperity of communities. For more info, click here . Mississippi Capital Improvements Revolving Loan Program (CAP) Loans for municipalities and counties in Mississippi for the improvement of public facilities and infrastructure, including hospitals, sewer systems, and water supply systems. For more info, click here .

Connect with us

‌ ‌ ‌