Message from the IARHC Board President | |
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Dear Members and Supporters of the Iowa Association of Rural Health Clinics,
I hope this letter finds you well and thriving in the spirit of community care that defines our shared mission at the Iowa Association of Rural Health Clinics.
As we embrace the new year, our commitment to enhancing healthcare accessibility in rural communities remains unwavering, and I am eager to navigate the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead alongside our dedicated board members. In the face of ongoing changes in the healthcare landscape, our focus on collaboration, advocacy, and innovation becomes increasingly vital. Together, we can ensure that every community member, regardless of their location, receives the quality healthcare they deserve.
I encourage each of you to actively participate in our upcoming events and initiatives. Your engagement is instrumental in shaping the future of rural healthcare in Iowa. By pooling our collective expertise and experiences, we can drive positive change and promote the well-being of our communities.
Let us embark on this journey together, fueled by the passion for community well-being and a shared commitment to excellence in rural healthcare.
Thank you for your ongoing support and dedication.
Best,
Ann Wise
Board President
Clinic Director
UnityPoint Clinic Buena Vista, Sac City, and Lake View
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IARHC State Capitol Report | |
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IARHC State Capitol Report
The Iowa Legislature is officially one-third of the way through its 100-day session. This update includes the week’s highlights, updates, and what is on the docket for the future. The IARHC Bill Tracker is the best place to find updates on where bills are in the legislative process. Bills are added daily, and bill status is in real-time, so you can always know where a bill is in the legislative process. Recent highlights:
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The House HHS Committee unanimously passed the bill limiting Medicaid claims reviews to a 24-month window. That bill has a new number - House File 2268.
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The Governor’s bill (SSB 3073/HSB 542) to reform the Area Education Agencies (AEAs) is the highest profile of those issues and has been featured in many news stories since its introduction. The Governor released an amended plan recently that incorporates some of the input she and her staff have collected from dozens of organizations.
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Governor's 12-month postpartum coverage bills (SSB 3140 & HSB 643) had subcommittee meetings in the Senate on Monday (2/5) at 4 pm and in the House on Tuesday (2/6).
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The bill (SSB 3141) replaces the income tax rate in the Iowa Code (set to hit 3.9% in 2026) with a rate of 3.775% in 2026 and 3.65% in 2027.
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The Income Tax Bill was introduced alongside SSB 3142, legislation to amend the Iowa Constitution to require a two-thirds vote to increase the income tax rate.
The most high-profile subcommittees this past week were AEA’s, Gender Identity and Eminent Domain – drawing many protesters to the capitol in the first week of February. There is just one week left to get bills out of their originating committee (by February 16). Bills left behind after the deadline are effectively defunct, unless resurrected as an amendment to another bill. View the latest State Capitol Report here.
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Scholarships now available for NRHA’s New Orleans events | |
Registration is open for NRHA’s Annual Rural Health Conference May 6-10 in New Orleans, and scholarships are available for three events to those who would otherwise not be able to attend. Join hundreds of rural health leaders to help raise the standard for rural health with more than 80 innovative, practical, and cost-saving sessions and much more. NRHA’s Annual Conference runs concurrently with our Rural Hospital Innovation Summit, and our expanded Health Equity Conference May 6-7 and Rural Medical Education Conference May 7 occur beforehand. | |
2024 Rural Health Clinic Quality Improvement Project | |
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Participate in a collaborative quality improvement project funded by the Iowa Office of Rural Health. This is a unique and timely opportunity for clinic leaders to prepare for anticipated public reporting mandates and develop valuable quality improvement skills and experience to foster future success. Participation has been designed to enable clinics to start when you are ready and proceed at a pace that fits with your operational realities.
Gain access to a set of best practice activities to drive improvement for the selected metric/focus area and translate those activities into formal Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) initiatives to be implemented during the project year. Access to these resources and tools are available to your clinic at no cost.
If you are interested in participating in this project, please reach out to Kristy Knutson at kristy.knutson@idph.iowa.gov and plan on having your clinic leaders attend an introductory 30-minute webinar on Friday, February 2nd at 11:00 AM Central.
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Community Health Worker (CHW) Registered Apprenticeship | Accepting Applications | |
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The Community Health Worker (CHW) Registered Apprenticeship training program helps to develop and build the skills of new and seasoned CHWs and other front-line professionals committed to advancing community health. The CHW Apprenticeship program is offered by the Iowa Chronic Care Consortium (ICCC) in partnership with Iowa Health and Human Services and Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) and is approved by the U.S. Department of Labor. The Apprenticeship requires a partnership between the employer, apprentice, and ICCC. In this Apprenticeship, ICCC serves as an intermediary, thus streamlining the program requirements for the employer. With the new CMS Physician Rule allowing for community health worker services to be billed to Medicare, this opens up opportunities for providers to incorporate this workforce into their care teams.
Special opportunities are available for Iowa residents and individuals employed in Iowa to receive a FULL tuition waiver and stipend support. The next cohort will start in early 2024, so please do not delay. To learn more information about this opportunity, visit www.communityhealthworker.org or contact Deb Kazmerzak.
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NRHA releases advocacy toolkit for 2024 Policy Institute | |
Health care bankruptcies reached 5-year peak in 2023 | |
Community health centers are a safety net under stress | |
The importance of building health care cultural competence | |
Resources For Rural Health Clinics | |
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The Emergency Preparedness Guide is our newest resource available on our website. This resource provides an overview of the regulatory guidance requirements and highlights components of an emergency preparedness manual.
Click the button below to view our resource page. The resource page also includes information from HRSA, CMS, Iowa Medicaid, NARHC, and Iowa HHS.
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NARHC REF Lookup Tool Portal | |
NARHC REP lookup interactive tool providing data on the Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes and Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes used by Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) for services provided to Medicare beneficiaries. Uses a statistically adjusted sample of health care claims data and carrier file claims from 2019-2021. Data are searchable by claim year, code, and percentage and frequency of use. | |
Since its launch in May 2022, the 24/7, free, confidential hotline has offered support from professional counselors to more than 27,000 pregnant and postpartum individuals who struggled with mental health concerns, and their loved ones. Support is available by phone or text, and in English and Spanish at 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262). | |
National Children’s Dental Health Month Starts Today | |
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February is National Children’s Dental Health Month. Check out HRSA’s website throughout this month to learn how parents, caregivers, and health care professionals can advance oral health for everyone in a family.
You’ll also find tips about brushing, flossing, and seeking regular dental checkups. We welcome you to explore and share our suite of related oral health resources.
Learn more about oral health for young children.
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Webinars, Trainings, & Events | |
Telehealth Policy Update and Overview | |
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This webinar on March 8, 2024, will review recent changes in telehealth policy at both the federal
and state level, including policies that were extended following the PHE, and developments in various interstate licensure compacts that are growing rapidly. Additionally, a review of the current policies and any recent updates of Medicaid will be included. Time is planned at the end for questions and discussion.
Webinar objectives:
1. Participants will understand key regulatory issues for telehealth programs
2. Participants will recognize various types of regulatory changes and the timeframes in
which they occur
3. Participants will know the current status of regulatory flexibilities and changes, and
how these relate to their telehealth program
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FORHP has coordinated with RHIHub and CMS to hold a webinar on February 27, 2024, at 3pm ET, to discuss the CY 2024 Physician Fee Schedule final rule. This webinar will focus heavily on the Community Health Integration Services and the Behavioral Health billing codes for Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT)/Mental Health Counselors (MHC). CMS will also review telehealth polices outlined in the PFS final rule.
You can find additional information here:
Marriage and family Therapists & Mental Health Counselors
MLN Guidance for RHC & FQHC Intensive Outpatient Program Services
CY 2024 Medicare PFS Final Rule – provides summary of Community Health Integration Services and the Behavioral Health billing codes for Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT)/Mental Health Counselors (MHC)
Additional information regarding registration for the webinar will be available soon.
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HELP Webinar: Creating a Health Equity Culture - Tools & Resources to Support Rural Health Care Leaders | |
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Rural health care leaders are committed to building a culture of health equity in their organizations and communities. To achieve this important goal, they seek strategies that will result in everyone in their rural community having an opportunity to attain their highest level of health. This session highlights new tools and resources to support rural health care leaders in moving their organizations and communities forward to create and sustain a culture that values and advances health equity. Featured will be examples of rural health organizations that are implementing programs to improve the diversity of its health workforce to reflect the communities they serve, establishing organizational policies to identify challenges addressing social drivers of health (SDoH), and engaging with community partners to promote equity within quality and value-based programs.
- Speaker: Alana Knudson, PhD, NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
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When: February 14, 2024, from 12:00-1:00pm
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Rural Health Care Program | Healthcare Connect Fund | |
The Healthcare Connect Fund (HCF) Program is a component program of the FCC's Rural Health Care Program. It provides funding to eligible healthcare providers for eligible expenses related to advanced telecommunications and information services necessary for the provision of healthcare. An eligible healthcare provider can apply individually or through a consortium. Examples of eligible products and services include broadband services, network equipment, and HCP-constructed and owned network facilities. The next application deadline is April 1, 2024. | |
Healthy for Life community nutrition grant for Cooperative Agencies Announced, Deadline February 28, 2024 | |
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Application is now open for the Healthy for Life community nutrition grant for Cooperative Extension agencies. A maximum of six grants will be awarded with the value of $2,500 and two grants with a value of $7,500 to support the implementation of Healthy for Life community nutrition program.
Application deadline: February 28, 2024, 11:59 PST. Award recipients will be announced mid-March 2024. To learn more about the criteria and key deliverables, see the application introduction. For additional questions about the grant opportunity, contact healthyforlife@heart.org.
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Rural Economic Development Loan & Grant Program | |
NARHC News, Policy, & Resources | |
CMS Takes Positive Step Forward in Addressing Prior Authorization Wait Times and Denials | |
On January 17th, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published a final rule designed to reform Medicare Advantage (MA) and other federally regulated health insurers’ prior authorization guidelines. While there is still more to be done, this is significant progress in the ongoing fight to increase transparency and timeliness for patients and providers. Read more here. | |
Advocate for rural health today! | |
Interested in advocating on behalf of rural health? Your first step should be participating in NRHA’s rural health advocacy campaigns. Current campaigns call on Congress to invest in a robust rural health workforce, reduce burden in rural health clinics, and invest in rural communities. Sign up to amplify your voice today. | |
NARHC Technical Assistance Webinars | |
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Did you miss the NARHC Medicare Physician Fee Schedule webinar? Watch the recordings or view the slide presentations below.
NARHC provides technical assistance webinars covering the most current and up-to-date information for RHCs. View more TA webinars here.
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Thank You IARHC Sponsors! | |
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Contact Us
Questions? Ideas you want to share? Concerns or barriers you’re facing? Feel free to reach out to staff at info@iarhc.org - we’ll try to help or get you connected. Or you can reach out to your colleagues by posting a question on the IARHC listserv. Simply send an email to iarhcmembers@simplelists.com. This listserv gives you access to the current IARHC membership – use it as a tool to learn from each other!
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IARHC Staff Members
Elva Griffin
info@iarhc.org
515.237.0328
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