On Monday, April 4, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) announced there was a bi-partisan agreement on legislation to fund a $10 billion package for coronavirus relief. The agreement includes $9.25 billion for therapeutics, testing, and vaccines and $750 million to research future variants. The legislation is fully offset by unspent funds from previously passed COVID-19 funding packages. Senator Schumer and House Leadership aimed to pass the legislation this week, but the bill stalled in the Senate because of a partisan fight over whether to allow a vote on an amendment to reinstate the Title 42 restrictions that had been used to deny migrants’ asylum claims at the U.S.-Mexico border. Congress is now in recess.

On April 5, President Biden signed an Executive Order to strengthen the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by fixing the “Family Glitch” which made health coverage unaffordable for thousands of families. Under the current rules, employer-based coverage was seen as affordable if the coverage was for the employee only, and not for family members. If affordable for the employee, families were ineligible for tax credits even though they may need them to afford marketplace coverage. Coverage for family members of the employee was often very expensive and caused many to go without coverage. The “Family Glitch” affects more than 5 million people and has shut consumers out of affordable coverage and tax credits. This Executive Order proposes to eliminate the “Family Glitch” and will allow families to access tax credits on the marketplace. If made final, the rule would take effect in 2023.

The Pennsylvania A Department of Human Services (DHS) visited Scranton Primary Health Care Center this week to celebrate Pennsylvania’s extension of postpartum coverage for mothers and birthing people eligible for Medicaid because of their pregnancy to one year after giving birth. The change, effective April 1, 2022, was made possible to states as part of the American Rescue Plan Act. Typically, Medicaid (Medical Assistance in Pennsylvania) coverage for people eligible due to their pregnancy ended 60 days after giving birth. Expanding postpartum coverage for mothers covered through Medicaid will provide continuity in health care by allowing mothers to maintain relationships with and access to care providers undisrupted through a critical period in the mother’s life Read more.

April is National Donate Life Month, and HRSA is celebrating how sweet life is when someone who needs an organ transplant finds a match. Help celebrate and honor the generosity of organ, eye, and tissue donors, donor families, as well as the lives saved through donation. This year’s theme is “Bee a Donor!” and HRSA encourages health centers to help create a buzz and to “bee” part of this life-saving community. Thank you for all you do to promote organ donation and encourage more donor registrations!

Five-Year Trends in U.S. Children’s Health and Well-being, 2016-2020, a Maternal Child Health Bureau study using their National Survey of Children’s Health data was recently published in the JAMA Pediatrics. A 29% increase in anxiety and 27% increase in depression over the five-year period was noted along with during the period of 2019-2020 (the first part of the pandemic) there was a 34% increase in parents who reported they quit, declined, or changed jobs due to child-care problems in the past 12 months, 32% increase in unmet health care needs, a 20% increase in behavioral/conduct problems, and a 9% reduction in preventive medical visits. You can also read an editorial that accompanied the article, Adversity and Opportunity – The Pandemic’s paradoxical Effect on Child Health and Well-being.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) seeks comment on revisions to its initiatives to fund access to broadband and telecommunication services for rural healthcare providers. FCC proposes to modify the way the internal funding cap applies to upfront costs and multi-year commitments in the Healthcare Connect Fund Program and to streamline the invoice process in the Telecommunications Program. The rule also seeks comments on ways to further increase the speed of funding commitments.

The implementation of telehealth due to the COVID-19 pandemic helped an FQHC retain patients in its opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment program, ensuring continued access to care, a new study shows. As health care became increasingly virtual during the pandemic, telehealth helped in providing high levels of care to opioid use disorder (OUD) patients, particularly those involved in buprenorphine treatment programs. The study took place at Chambersburg, PA-based Keystone Health, an FQHC that serves about 56,000 patients, 60% of whom come from rural areas. Researchers collected information, including visit dates, progress notes, urine drug tests, current and prior buprenorphine formulation, and dosage, to conduct a retrospective chart review. Read more.

There was a significant jump in the prevalence of prediabetes among teens in the U.S. between 1999 and 2018, according to an analysis published in JAMA Pediatrics. The researchers used data from nearly 7,000 kids ages 12–19 in the CDC’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which included the collection of blood samples. The number of kids who were prediabetic increased from more than 11% to 28% over that time. The researchers noted that the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force released a recommendation on screening for prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes among adults but hasn’t yet made recommendations for kids.