Award-winning broadcaster Soledad O'Brien interviewed Dr. Robert Smith, CEO at Central Mississippi Medical Clinic, at the health center last week about the history of health care in Mississippi for those underserved. The episode is part of a new series Ms. O'Brien is producing. More details about the network and date of broadcast will soon be announced.

Tougaloo College alumnus Dr. Obie McNair, COO at Central Miss. Medical Services joins Dr. Anthony Fauci, Dr. Dobbs, and fellow Tougaloo College alum Dr. Myrna Nikens to discuss the COVID-19 impact on minority groups in Mississippi. If you have a question to ask the panel, please email to the organizers at Tougalook College here by noon, tomorrow Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2021.

Watch the live stream here on Tuesday, Feb. 12th.

340B Recertification Deadline March 1

The 340B recertification process is open February 1 - March 1, 2021. Covered entities that do not recertify by the deadline of Monday, March 1, will be terminated from the HRSA 340B Program starting on Tuesday, March 2. They will require a new registration and will not be eligible to participate in the 340B Program until July. To recertify, Authorizing Officials and Primary Contacts must first set up user accounts by visiting the HRSA 340B Office of Pharmacy Affairs Information System (340B OPAIS) and choosing “I am a participant.” It is the covered entity’s responsibility to ensure they have created their accounts before recertification to allow for successful completion of the process. For questions or assistance, email the 340B call center or call 888-340-2787, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.

Direct Relief and CHCAMS have partnered to provide mini-grants to 5 health centers. The grant will support activities that address food insecurity among patient populations. Congratulations to ACCESS Family Health Clinic, Coastal Family Health Center, Central Miss. Medical Clinic, G.A. Carmichael Family Health Center, and MississippiCare.

National Wear Red Day February 5, 2021

National Wear Red Day is the icon day of American Heart Month. On February 5, wear red and help raise awareness of women’s number 1 killer -- cardiovascular disease.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a rule change to allow physicians to prescribe buprenorphine for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) without a waiver. The move by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) eliminates the eight-hour X-waiver course physicians were required to complete by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) before prescribing buprenorphine treatment. Physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and other approved advanced practice nurses will still need to obtain an X-waiver before prescribing buprenorphine for the treatment of OUD. For more information on this change, please visit the HHS website.

The new administration has frozen a rule that would adversely impact Community Health Centers and the nearly 30 million patients they serve – a majority of whom are living in poverty or are uninsured. The regulation, which was based on an Executive Order issued last July, was based on a fundamental misunderstanding that would have imposed extensive administrative burdens and targeted EpiPens and insulin dispensed by health centers and purchased under the federal 340B drug discount program. The stated aim was to cut drug prices. However, it triggered alarms among safety-net health care providers and bipartisan lawmakers, because it would accomplish the opposite of what the Trump Administration intended — ultimately making it harder for health centers to provide affordable life-saving services and prescription drugs — especially during the pandemic. To be clear, the insulin and Epipen regulation that was frozen by the Biden Administration only affects medications purchased through the 340B drug discount program at health centers. 

President’s COVID-19 Plan Calls for “New Partnership” with Community Health Centers

On his first full day in office, President Biden unveiled a 100-plus page national strategy and signed 10 Executive Orders for defeating COVID-19. In the plan, the President proposes to “Launch a new partnership with Federally Qualified Health Centers nationwide” (see page 43.) Highlights of this proposed partnership include:

The REPAAIR initiative provides an opportunity for college students at Tougaloo College, Jackson State University, and Hinds Community College to engage in training and service-learning activities that help them understand the historical and contemporary factors that have contributed to disparate health outcomes among Black Mississippians and communities of color.

please contact Desiree Stinson.

Grants with ongoing deadlines can be found here .