This article presents concerns that, as COVID-19 continues to be an issue, residents will not be able to meet residency requirements. This follows the mid-March decision by the Accredited Council for Graduate Medical Education to allow hospitals to send residents to other specialties and suspend educational requirements. Thus, residents have been working as COVID-19 doctor’s, rather than practicing for their chosen specialties, which for residents that have chosen specialties like general surgery, acting like COVID-19 doctors has made it difficult to meet educational requirements. Many residents were sent to Emergency Departments and Intensive Care Units to act as medical interns, effectively stopping their specialties. Residents not changed to different specialties also experienced a shift in their education. Further, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), many medical students failed to match to residency programs.

There are higher cancer related death rates in rural America due to poorer access to proper care, despite lower cancer-incidence rates. The article states that researchers have found that the telehealth infrastructure implemented in California mountain communities “enhanced the reach and quality of care as measured by volume, in-migration, clinical trial activity, and national quality accreditations.” Telehealth has become increasingly more important, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. In June, the Federal Communications Commission announced that it would supply funding to rural health providers to establish necessary broadband connectivity for telehealth and virtual care services. However, in May, rural hospitals stated that necessary payments models must also be put in place help them control costs and weather the pandemic.

Drug overdose related deaths were at a record high in 2019, despite the Trump Administration using resources to combat the opioid crisis. This led to a 4.6% drop in 2018, but experts state progress was short-lived. This likely relates to the dramatic rise in synthetic opioid drug use and addiction experts note. Further, the 2019 data does not include racial and ethnic minorities, but the 2018 data notes an increase, particularly among black Americans. The situation is expected to get worse in 2020 because COVID-19 has exacerbated the situation after closing outpatient centers due to lockdowns in response to the virus. However, the Trump Administration has loosened restrictions on telehealth services, improving access issues that existed before the pandemic.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will make 57 awards of up to $175,000 each to support collection of population-based data on maternal and child health indicators that can be used to inform programs, research, and systems changes that influence maternal and infant health. Eligible applicants include state, local, and tribal governments, community-based organizations, and institutions of higher education. Extended to August 11th.

This week, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) issued a final rule that makes changes to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services’ (HHS) regulations governing the Confidentiality of Substance Use Disorder Patient Records. The final rule includes a discussion of comments, some of which address rural issues. Read more here.