On July 7, HRSA published the complete lists of all geographic areas, population groups, and facilities designated as primary medical care, dental health, and mental health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) as of April 29, 2022.  In this notice, HRSA also indicated that the agency will be providing a longer transition time for jurisdictions and facilities to prepare for potential changes to HPSA designations given the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Specifically, HPSA designations that are currently proposed for withdrawal will remain designated in “proposed for withdrawal” status until they are reevaluated in preparation for the publication of the 2023 HPSA notice. This additional time will allow jurisdictions to re-evaluate their HPSAs against the designation criteria, and plan for potential changes in staffing.

On July 7, CMS published a proposed rule updating payment policies, payment rates, and other provisions for services furnished under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. Included in this rule are updates to Accountable Care Organization (ACO) policies under the Medicare Shared Savings Program designed to increase participation among rural and underserved communities, including proposals to provide Advance Investment Payments building on lessons learned from CMS’s ACO Investment Model and to smooth the transition to performance-based risk. Additionally, CMS is extending telehealth regulatory flexibilities beyond the pandemic in line with the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 and incorporating new chronic pain management and behavioral health integration services to the Rural Health Clinic and Federally Qualified Health Center codes– Comment by September 6.

Rural residents who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) experience even poorer pregnancy-related health outcomes. Racial disparities in rural maternal and infant health outcomes may be related to limited accessibility of clinical care and pregnancy/postnatal support programs and services in rural communities. This policy brief from the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center describes these differences between majority-BIPOC versus majority-white rural counties’ available maternal and infant health evidence-based supports.

Researchers looked at survey responses from women of reproductive age across eight rural U.S. regions to determine the association between contraceptive use and SUD treatment, healthcare utilization, and substance use.  They found that less than 40 percent of respondents to the Rural Opioid Initiative (ROI) survey reported contraceptive use, compared to 66 percent responding to a more general survey on families, fertility, and health from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Odds of contraceptive use increased, however, for ROI women who had received treatment for substance use disorder within the last 30 days.

On Monday, HHS announced new guidance on the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act that protects providers when offering life- or health-saving abortion services in emergency situations.  The statute requires Medicare hospitals to provide all patients an appropriate medical screening, examination, stabilizing treatment, and transfer, if necessary, irrespective of any state laws or mandates that apply to specific procedures.

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) seeks input from individuals; paid and unpaid caregivers; community-based organizations; health care providers; professional societies; community health centers and Rural Health Clinics; state, local, tribal, and territorial governments, and public health departments; educators; academic researchers; global partners; health insurance payers and purchasers; health technology developers; and policy experts.  Respondents are asked to provide information on successful models or innovations that improve primary health care and successful strategies to engage communities.

Comments Requested by August 1

Using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the national nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation reports that suicide death rates in 2020 were highest among American Indian and Alaska Native people, males, and people who live in rural areas.  While women are more likely to report mental illness and are more likely to attempt suicide, suicide death rates for men are four times higher.  The report comes ahead of the launch of a new crisis line, 988, that goes live this Saturday.  The Bipartisan Policy Center provides details on the funding and policy steps taken to implement 988 and identifies three areas – federal interagency collaboration, the behavioral health workforce, and financing – essential to its success.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is partnering with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on their “We Can Do This” public education campaign to increase COVID-19 vaccine confidence. In the wake of the newly-authorized COVID-19 vaccine for young children, the AAP and HHS collaborated on a new toolkit for medical professionals engaged in thoughtful discussions with parents and families on the importance of immunization. The toolkit contains new informational content, posters, flyers, social media graphics, AAP videos, and more. These resources will also be available in Spanish here.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced an enhanced nationwide vaccination strategy to mitigate the spread of monkeypox. The strategy will vaccinate and protect those at risk of monkeypox, prioritize vaccines for areas with the highest numbers of cases and provide guidance to state, territorial, tribal, and local health officials to aid their planning and response efforts. Read more about the strategy here. For more information regarding Monkeypox clinical diagnosis and treatment review the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) Call. There have been confirmed cases of Monkeypox in Pennsylvania to date, including one identified by a western Pennsylvania Community Health Center.

Looking to further integrate telehealth into your medical practice? This useful tip sheet highlights the five important steps you need to plan your telehealth workflow.