Rural Health Information Hub Latest News

2021 PA Oral Health Champion Awards: Now Accepting Nominations

Posted on by lad3


PCOH is pleased to announce the 2021 PA Oral Health Champion Awards. Awardees will be selected by the Board of Directors of PCOH, upon recommendation of the Summit Committee, and are based on notable work on oral health progress in Pennsylvania. Awardees will have the option to accept their awards in-person or virtually at the 2021 PA Oral Health Summit on November 12th. All nominations must be submitted by September 27th at 5 p.m.

Award Categories

— Innovative Oral Health Champion (individual)

— Innovative Oral Health Champion (organization)

— Community Water Fluoridation Champion (individual or organization)

Click here to download the nomination form.

USDA Launches Grant Program to Help Expand Regional Economies and Create High-Wage Jobs in Distressed Rural Communities

Posted on by lad3

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development Rural Business-Cooperative Service Administrator Karama Neal today unveiled a new grant program to help rural communities create good-paying jobs and support new business opportunities in high-growth fields.

Rural Innovation Stronger Economy (RISE) is intended to help rural communities identify and maximize local assets and connect to networks and industry clusters within their region. The new grant encourages a regional, innovation-driven approach to economic development.

“USDA is innovating the way we do business,” Neal said. “The RISE program ensures that critical funding supports long-term and sustainable economic growth in the rural communities and regions that need it most.”

RISE provides grants of up to $2 million to consortiums of local governments, investors, industry, institutions of higher education, and other public and private entities in rural areas. The funds may be used to form job accelerator partnerships and create high-wage jobs, start or expand businesses, and support economic growth in the rural areas of their region.

Funding may also be used to establish and operate innovation centers and partnerships, such as integrating rural businesses into new supply chains, providing workforce training and identifying community assets.

To help ensure long-term and sustainable community and economic development, award recipients must support projects for at least four years.

Applicants are encouraged to contact their nearest USDA Rural Development State Office ahead of the application deadline for more information about the program or the application process.

Starting June 16, 2021, applications will be accepted electronically at Grants.gov. Applications must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on Aug. 2, 2021. Information about the application process is available in a notice in the Federal Register. For additional information about the program, see the final rule on page 31585 of the June 15 Federal Register.

Under the Biden-Harris Administration, Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural, tribal and high-poverty areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov. If you’d like to subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit our GovDelivery subscriber page.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.

USDA Seeks Applications to Strengthen Rural Cooperatives and Improve Economic Conditions in Rural Areas

Posted on by lad3

USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Justin Maxson announced that the Department is accepting applications for grants to help start, expand, or improve rural cooperatives and other mutually-owned businesses in rural America.

USDA is making $5.8 million in grants available under the Rural Cooperative Development Grant (RCDG) program to help improve economic conditions in rural areas through cooperative development.

Nonprofit corporations and institutions of higher education are eligible to apply for the available funds to provide technical and cooperative development assistance to individuals and rural businesses.

For FY 2021, the maximum award is $200,000. Grants are awarded on a competitive basis through a national competition.

Electronic applications must be submitted to grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on August 10, 2021.

Interested applicants are encouraged to contact their local USDA Rural Development State Office well in advance of the application deadline to discuss their project and ask any questions about the RCDG program or the application process. Additional information on the required materials and how to apply for the RCDG program are available on page 31266 of the June 11, 2021, Federal Register.

If you’d like to subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit our GovDelivery subscriber page.

New Resource: A Primer for Multi-Sector Health Partnerships in Rural Areas and Small Cities

Posted on by lad3

The Build Healthy Places Network (BHPN) is thrilled to announce the release of our Primer for Multi-Sector Health Partnerships in Rural Areas and Small Cities. Designed for practitioners working or interested in these communities, this new tool is a guide to cross-sector collaborations between the community development, finance, public health, and healthcare sectors to support partnerships in rural areas and small cities.  This primer is part of a larger BHPN commitment to incorporate resources that support multi-sector partnerships that lead to community-centered investments that foster healthier lives and more opportunities for all in rural areas and small cities.

Click here to access the primer.

Hunger Awareness Month Food Assistance is Available to Keep Pennsylvanians Fed, Healthy

Posted on by lad3

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), 12 percent of the U.S. population has limited access to nutritious food. Hunger can impact your health and wellbeing throughout your life, work performance, and the rate that children learn and grow. It is imperative that we reduce hunger and promote good health by ensuring that Pennsylvanians are able to access to fresh, healthy food as well as health and nutrition information and education.

In recognition of National Hunger Awareness Month in June, the Department of Human Services is highlighting some of the food and nutrition programs available for children, adults, and seniors in Pennsylvania. Check out some of the programs available below.

FIND A FOOD PANTRY NEAR YOU

GENERAL RESOURCES

  • Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
    SNAP helps Pennsylvanians by providing money each month that can only be spent on groceries, helping households have resources to purchase enough food for their household.
  • Farmers Market Nutrition Programs
    The WIC Farmers Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) and Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP) provide WIC recipients and low-income seniors with fresh, nutritious, unprepared, locally grown fruits, vegetables, and herbs from approved farmers’ in Pennsylvania.

WOMEN & CHILDREN

  • Special Supplemental Nutrition Program
    for Woman, Infants and Children
    WIC helps pregnant women, mothers and caregivers of infants and young children learn about good nutrition to keep themselves and their families healthy. It provides nutrition services, breastfeeding support, health care and social service referrals and healthy foods to eligible participants.
  • School Nutrition Programs  |  Find Meals for Kids near you!
    Free school meals (breakfast/lunch) are available for children from families receiving food stamp benefits or TANF, and children from families with incomes at or below 130 percent of the poverty level. Reduced price school meals are available for children from families whose incomes are between 130 percent and 185 percent of the poverty level.
  • Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
    Also referred to as cash assistance, TANF provides cash assistance to pregnant women and dependent children and their parents or relatives who live with and care for them.

OLDER PENNSYLVANIANS

  • Senior Food Box Program
    The Senior Food Box Program works to improve the health of low-income seniors by supplementing their diets with nutritious USDA Foods. In Pennsylvania, eligible participants include low-income individuals who are at least 60 years old and whose household income is at or below 130 percent of the U.S. poverty level.

Congregate and Home-Delivered Meals

Contact your local Area Agency on Aging
These programs provide nutritious meals to individuals age 60 or older, and their spouses, free of charge. Meals can be delivered directly to eligible individuals’ homes.

For additional resources and information on the Wolf Administration’s Blueprint to End Hunger in the Commonwealth, please go to www.dhs.pa.gov/ending-hunger.

Pennsylvania Governor: Counties, Cities, Local Governments Should Request American Rescue Plan Local Funding Allocations 

Posted on by lad3

Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Secretary Dennis Davin announced that counties, metropolitan cities, and local governments are now able to request their portion of federal Local Fiscal Recovery funding provided by the American Rescue Plan.

“Today, county and municipal governments are able to request the Local Fiscal Recovery funds that have been made available to them by the American Rescue Plan,” said Sec. Davin. “This funding provides immediate relief for local governments that have seen unprecedented fiscal challenges due to COVID-19. I encourage every county, city, and municipal government to take advantage of these funds that will help them recover from the pandemic and chart a course for long-term growth.”

As part of the American Rescue Plan signed by President Joseph R. Biden, the federal government is providing a total of approximately $6.15 billion to Pennsylvania counties, metropolitan cities, and local government units to support COVID-19 response efforts, replace lost revenue, support economic stabilization for households and businesses, and address systemic public health and economic challenges.

The U.S. Department of Treasury has established two separate methods for local governments to request these funds, depending on the type of local government:

  1. County governments and metropolitan city governments must request funds directly from the U.S. Department of the Treasury via their Submission Portal webpage.
  2. Local governments that are NOT metropolitan cities or counties – called non-entitlement units of local government (NEUs) – must request the funds through the commonwealth by visiting the DCED website.

Due to Treasury’s requirements that states disburse all Local Fiscal Recovery funding within 30 days of the state receiving the federal funds, DCED strongly recommends that NEUs request their funding in the next five days to allow adequate processing time for each request.

Information about how to request funds, eligible uses for the funding, and federal allocation amounts for counties, cities, and NEUs can be found on the DCED website and the U.S. Department of Treasury website. Local governments with further questions about accessing these funds should email covidarpa@pa.gov.

USDA Launches Resource Guide to Help America’s Rural Workforce Build Back Better

Posted on by lad3

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Justin Maxson unveiled a resource guide to help rural community leaders start and expand employment opportunities and access resources to train, recruit and create a sustainable rural workforce.

“America’s rural workforce is critical to the success of the nation’s economy,” Maxson said. “As USDA continues to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and help restore the economy, we remain committed to helping rural employers build back America’s rural workforce to be better, stronger and more equitable than ever before.”

The resource guide outlines programs and services available at USDA and other federal agencies that support workforce development in rural communities. It helps community leaders and other local entities access resources more easily to create jobs, train talent, expand educational opportunities and provide technical assistance.

A resource matrix organizes USDA funding opportunities by four key assistance types:

  1. Workforce development planning;
  2. Infrastructure and equipment financing;
  3. Industry and employer engagement, entrepreneurship and local business development; and,
  4. Education, training and apprenticeship.

The guide also features examples of how customers have used USDA programs to support each assistance type. It includes recommendations on how rural leaders can replicate this assistance in their communities.

Additional resources to support rural workforce development are available at www.rd.usda.gov/rwin.

To learn more about investment resources for rural areas, contact the nearest USDA Rural Development state office.

Under the Biden-Harris Administration, Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural, tribal and high-poverty areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov. If you’d like to subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit our GovDelivery subscriber page.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.

Commentary: The Future of Rural Libraries Could Be Healthcare

Posted on by lad3

With newly available funding opportunities and new technologies, libraries could be at the forefront of the rural healthcare revolution.

Libraries are in the vanguard of transforming healthcare delivery. Libraries reach out and touch virtually everyone in their communities across the entire economic spectrum. The same way libraries brought high-speed Internet to the underserved communities, so they will deploy telehealth to bring affordable healthcare where it’s most needed..

In October 2020, the Daily Yonder spotlighted Pottsboro, Texas’ public library and its director, Dianne Connery, who had plans to open a telehealth center in the library. Connerly seems to have unleashed significant pent-up desire to replicate telehealth in libraries nationwide.

She rolled out her telehealth center in January 2021 and in February she was promoted to rural special projects librarian. “Manage your expectations because it takes a while to build the crowd to telehealth services,” she said. “We only set appointments for two days a week. Our partner, the University of North Texas Health Science Center, will keep our growth steady and controlled.”

A lot of libraries right now are struggling to keep up with everything that’s going on,” said Henry Stokes, library technology consultant at Texas State Library and Archives. “But as they move forward and see their peers push telehealth initiatives, we’ll see health become prominently featured in libraries. Telehealth is such a great fit!” The Federal Communications Commission’s $7.1 billion E-rate grant program for libraries and schools will move many libraries sooner rather than later.

Read more.

Biden Administration Continues Efforts to Increase Vaccinations By Bolstering Payments for At-Home COVID-19 Vaccinations for Medicare Beneficiaries

Posted on by lad3

Action Could Impact as many as 1.6 Million People with Medicare

As part of President Biden’s commitment to increasing access to vaccinations, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced an additional payment amount for administering in-home COVID-19 vaccinations to Medicare beneficiaries who have difficulty leaving their homes or are otherwise hard-to-reach. This announcement further demonstrates continued efforts of the Biden-Harris Administration to meet people where they are and make it as easy as possible for all Americans to get vaccinated.  There are approximately 1.6 million adults 65 or older who may have trouble accessing COVID-19 vaccinations because they have difficulty leaving home.

While many Medicare beneficiaries can receive a COVID-19 vaccine at a retail pharmacy, their physician’s office, or a mass vaccination site, some beneficiaries have great difficulty leaving their homes or face a taxing effort getting around their communities easily to access vaccination in these settings. To better serve this group, Medicare is incentivizing providers and will pay an additional $35 per dose for COVID-19 vaccine administration in a beneficiary’s home, increasing the total payment amount for at-home vaccination from approximately $40 to approximately $75 per vaccine dose. For a two-dose vaccine, this results in a total payment of approximately $150 for the administration of both doses, or approximately $70 more than the current rate.

“CMS is committed to meeting the unique needs of Medicare consumers and their communities – particularly those who are home bound or who have trouble getting to a vaccination site. That’s why we’re acting today to expand the availability of the COVID-19 vaccine to people with Medicare  at home,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-Lasure. “We’re committed to taking action wherever barriers exist and bringing the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic to the door of older adults and other individuals covered by Medicare who still need protection.”

Delivering COVID-19 vaccination to access-challenged and hard-to-reach individuals poses some unique challenges, such as ensuring appropriate vaccine storage temperatures, handling, and administration. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has outlined guidance to assist vaccinators in overcoming these challenges. Today’s announcement now helps to address the financial burden associated with accommodating these complications.

The additional payment amount also accounts for the clinical time needed to monitor a beneficiary after the vaccine is administered, as well as the upfront costs associated with administering the vaccine safely and appropriately in a beneficiary’s home. The payment rate for administering each dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, as well as the additional in-home payment amount, will be geographically adjusted based on where the service is furnished.

How to Find a COVID-19 Vaccine

As today’s action demonstrates, a person’s ability to leave their home should not be an obstacle to getting the COVID-19 vaccine. As states and the federal government continue to break down barriers – like where vaccines can be administered – resources for connecting communities to vaccination options remain key. Unvaccinated individuals and those looking to assist friends and family can:

  1. Visit vaccines.gov (English) or vacunas.gov (Spanish) to search for vaccines nearby.
  2. Text GETVAX (438829) for English or VACUNA (822862) for Spanish for near-instant access to details on three vaccine sites in the local area.
  3. Call the National COVID-19 Vaccination Assistance Hotline at 1-800-232-0233 (TTY: 1-888-720-7489) for assistance in English and Spanish.

Coverage of COVID-19 Vaccines

The federal government is providing the COVID-19 vaccine free of charge or with no cost-sharing for all people living in the United States. As a condition of receiving free COVID-19 vaccines from the federal government, vaccine providers cannot charge patients any amount for administering the vaccine.

Because no patient can be billed for COVID-19 vaccinations, CMS and its partners have provided a variety of information online for providers vaccinating all Americans regardless of their insurance status:

  • Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage: Beneficiaries with Medicare pay nothing for COVID-19 vaccines or their administration, and there is no applicable copayment, coinsurance or deductible.
  • Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP):State Medicaid and CHIP agencies must cover COVID-19 vaccine administration with no cost sharing for nearly all beneficiaries during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) and for over a year after it ends. For the very limited number of Medicaid beneficiaries who are not eligible for this coverage (and do not receive it through other coverage they might have), providers may submit claims for reimbursement for administering the COVID-19 vaccine to underinsured individuals through the COVID-19 Coverage Assistance Fund, administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), as discussed below. Under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP), signed by President Biden on March 11, 2021, the federal matching percentage for state Medicaid and CHIP expenditures on COVID-19 vaccine administration is currently 100% (as of April 1, 2021), and will remain 100% for more than a year after the COVID-19 PHE ends. The ARP also expands coverage of COVID-19 vaccine administration under Medicaid and CHIP to additional eligibility groups. CMS recently updated the Medicaid vaccine toolkit to reflect the enactment of the ARP at https://www.medicaid.gov/state-resource-center/downloads/covid-19-vaccine-toolkit.pdf.
  • Private Plans: The vaccine is free for people enrolled in private health plans and issuers COVID-19 vaccine and its administration is covered without cost sharing for most enrollees, and such coverage must be provided both in-network and out-of-network during the PHE. Current regulations provide that out-of-network rates must be reasonable as compared to prevailing market rates, and the rules reference using the Medicare payment rates as a potential guideline for insurance companies. In light of CMS’s increased Medicare payment rates, CMS will expect health insurance issuers and group health plans to continue to ensure their rates are reasonable when compared to prevailing market rates. Under the conditions of participation in the CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Program, providers cannot charge plan enrollees any administration fee or cost sharing, regardless of whether the COVID-19 vaccine is administered in-network or out-of-network.

The Biden-Harris Administration is providing free access to COVID-19 vaccines for every adult living in the United States. For individuals who are underinsured, providers may submit claims for reimbursement for administering the COVID-19 vaccine through the COVID-19 Coverage Assistance Fund administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) after the claim to the individual’s health plan for payment has been denied or only partially paid. Information is available at https://www.hrsa.gov/covid19-coverage-assistance.

For individuals who are uninsured, providers may submit claims for reimbursement for administering the COVID-19 vaccine to individuals without insurance through the Provider Relief Fund, administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Information on the COVID-19 Claims Reimbursement to Health Care Providers and Facilities for Testing, Treatment, and Vaccine Administration for the Uninsured Program is available at https://www.hrsa.gov/CovidUninsuredClaim.

More information on Medicare payment for COVID-19 vaccine administration – including a list of billing codes, payment allowances and effective dates – is available at https://www.cms.gov/medicare/covid-19/medicare-covid-19-vaccine-shot-payment.

More information regarding the CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Program Provider Requirements and how the COVID-19 vaccine is provided through that program at no cost to recipients is available at https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/vaccination-provider-support.html.

Get CMS news at cms.gov/newsroom, sign up for CMS news via email and follow CMS on @CMSgov

Rural and Minority Health Research Center Annual Report Published

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Over the last 20 years, health equity has been the focus of the Rural and Minority Health Research Center (RMHRC) at the University of South Carolina.  For health equity to exist, obstacles that prevent all individuals from having an opportunity to live a healthy life must be identified and addressed.  COVID-19’s impact on rural and minority communities has further illuminated the challenges rural communities, persons of color, and Indigenous people face.  Increased socioeconomic burden, inadequate access to healthcare, and higher unemployment rates have exacerbated the impact from COVID-19 on these citizens who are disproportionately susceptible to the risks of COVID-19 infection and death.

The RMHRC Annual Report highlights our goals, accomplishments, and team members. In 2020, our research led to 59 peer-reviewed publications seven of which are presented in the annual report.

The Center’s data driven research can be used to inform impactful policies and improve population health.  Let us know how we can help you support rural health.