- Native Americans Have Shorter Life Spans, and It's Not Just Due to Lack of Health Care
- Promotoras Play Essential Role in Connecting Farmworkers with Health Care in Rural NorCal
- Using Medicaid to Address Young People's Mental Health Needs in School Settings
- Across the Country, Amish Populations Are on the Rise
- Sunsets, Wildlife and Limited Care: Challenges of Aging in Place in Rural America
- City-Country Mortality Gap Widens amid Persistent Holes in Rural Health Care Access
- Tribal Environmental Impact Network
- Minnesota's Rural Ambulance Providers Look to State Capitol for Their Own Lifeline
- Biden-Harris Administration Takes Action to Support the Primary Care Workforce
- Over 3,000 Homes on the Navajo Nation Receive Accurate Addresses for the First Time
- Rural Population Grows for Second Consecutive Year
- Rapides Library Offers Telehealth to a Town Without Doctors
- Rural Infection Preventionists Need Community Support
- New Federal Health IT Strategy Sets Sights on a Heathier, More Innovative, and More Equitable Health Care Experience
- Upcoming Virtual Workshop: Partnering for Success: Building Partnerships for Health Workforce Training and Education
Management Checklist for Teleworking Surge During the COVID-19 Response
While teleworking has become a routine way of doing business in many industry sectors and
government, teleworking during wide-scale public emergencies such as what we are experiencing with
the emergence of the COVID-19 virus introduces significant management, technology and bandwidth
challenges to ensuring uninterrupted and efficient workflow and provision of services to the public.
Added strain on the public telecommunications infrastructure over the “last mile” to the home, in
particular, requires critical healthcare entities to assess risk, prioritize tasks and apportion bandwidth
resources to ensure continuity of mission-essential functions that may migrate off premises to the home
office environment. Continue reading.
Epidemic Preparedness For Community Organizations
From the Exension Disaster Education Network.
Community organizations, such as faith-based organizations and nonprofits, are instrumental before, during and after epidemics. This program walks organizations through a process to learn about potential epidemics, serve their members and serve their communities before, during and after an epidemic. Continue reading.
Occupancy Rates in Rural and Urban Hospitals: Value and Limitations in Use as a Measure of Surge Capacity
March 25, 2020
As policymakers deal with the effects of the novel coronavirus pandemic on the hospital infrastructure, understanding the differences in occupancy rates between rural and urban hospitals may help state and local officials in their planning for dealing with surge demand. Historically, rural hospitals have reported lower occupancy rates than urban hospitals and more licensed than staffed beds. This may represent surge capacity for state and local officials to consider in responding to this crisis. The purpose of this brief is to describe variations in hospital occupancy rates nationally and by state, provide additional data for state and local officials, and highlight challenges in identifying surge capacity. Continue reading.
Rural Response to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
Specific news, events, information and resources for rural communities. Read more.
COVID-19 Resources for Emergency Medical Personnel
The EMS and 911 systems play a vital role in the response to public health emergencies such as COVID-19. Read more.
From NHTSA’s Office of EMS.
FCC Waives Rural Health Care and E-Rate Program Gift Rules to Promote Connectivity for Hospitals and Students During Coronavirus Pandemic
WASHINGTON, March 18, 2020—The Federal Communications Commission today
announced important changes to the Rural Health Care (RHC) and E-Rate programs that will
make it easier for broadband providers to support telehealth and remote learning efforts during
the coronavirus pandemic. Specifically, the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau has waived
the gift rules until September 30, 2020 to enable service providers to offer, and RHC and ERate program participants to solicit and accept, improved connections or additional equipment
for telemedicine or remote learning during the coronavirus outbreak.
Read more
HHS: Designation of Scarce Materials or Threatened Materials Subject to COVID-19 Hoarding Prevention Measures
Notice of Executive Order from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services publishing a list of medical resources that are needed to combat the spread of COVID-19 which have been designated as scarce or which are likely to be in short supply and should not be hoarded, effective March 25, 2020. Read more here.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic: Supply Chain Stabilization Task Force
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) created the Supply Chain Stabilization Task Force to address the limited supply of protective and life-saving equipment during the coronavirus pandemic. It describes how the task force is increasing availability of critical resources through preservation of equipment, acceleration of industrial manufacturing, expansion of the industry, and allocation of resources. Read more here.
Chairman Pai Announces Plan for $200 Million COVID-19 Telehealth Program
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai announced his plan for a COVID-19 Telehealth Program, which includes $200 million to support healthcare providers responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program would help providers purchase telehealth equipment and necessary bandwidth to provide remote care to uninfected patients. Read more here.
With $349 Billion in Emergency Small Business Capital Cleared, SBA and Treasury Begin Unprecedented Public-Private Mobilization Effort to Distribute Funds
The Small Business Administration (SBA) and Treasury Department announced the initiation of the Paycheck Protection Program, established through the CARES Act. This program mobilizes banks and other lending institutions to provide small businesses with the capital they need to keep their workforce employed and pay operating expenses during COVID-19. Read more here.