Medicare health and drug plans can make changes each year—things like cost, coverage, and what providers and pharmacies are in their networks. You can change your Medicare health plan and/or Medicare drug coverage from October 15–December 7. Before the Medicare OEP, you’ll get notices in the mail about changes to your coverage for the coming year. You should always review the materials you get from your plan, like the “Evidence of Coverage” (EOC) and “Annual Notice of Change” (ANOC). If your plan is changing, make sure it will still meet your needs for the next year. If you’re satisfied with your plan, you don’t need to do anything.

For more information, call 1-800-MEDICARE or visit Medicare.gov.

“Medicare Open Enrollment Period (OEP) Bootcamp 2022” Webinars

September 28–29 from 1:00–2:30 p.m. ET

Join us as we share Medicare updates and resources to help those who assist people with Medicare make informed decisions about their 2023 health care coverage.

Topics for each day:

Wednesday, September 28—Medicare Plan Finder basics, updates, and user tips, information about the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022, including details about new costs for insulin and vaccines in 2023, and Q&A.

To register for the September 28 webinar, visit CMSnationaltrainingprogram.cms.gov/moodle/course/view.php?id=227

Thursday, September 29—Medicare OEP overview, general program and cost updates, OEP Media outreach campaigns, Call Center overview and activities, vaccination campaigns, State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) overview and OEP resources, and fraud awareness and prevention.

To register for the September 29 webinar, visit CMSnationaltrainingprogram.cms.gov/moodle/course/view.php?id=228

These webinars will be recorded and posted to the National Training Program (NTP) website. To view the recordings, visit CMSnationaltrainingprogram.cms.gov/?q=ntp-courses.

Locating and Applying for Federal Grants

Join representatives from USDA Rural Development, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Economic Development Administration, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response to learn about federal funding opportunities.

We’ll discuss how to locate federal grants, share tips on completing applications, and give an overview on federal grants management. Workshops will take place regionally, and you can attend whichever workshop is most convenient for you.

If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate in the webinar, please notify the RWIN Team at RD.Innovation.RWIN@usda.gov.

• Midwest: September 29, 2022, 2 – 4 p.m. Eastern Time
  Registration
• West: October 13, 2022, 2 – 4 p.m. Eastern Time
  Registration
• Northeast: October 27, 2022, 2 – 4 p.m. Eastern Time
  Registration
• South: November 17, 2022, 2 – 4 p.m. Eastern Time
  Registration

To learn more about the upcoming webinars, visit Rural Workforce Innovation Network.

Have you thought about applying for an NIH Extramural LRP award? Do you know someone that should?  Awardees can receive up to $100,000 of qualified educational debt repayment with a two-year contract.

The NIH LRPs are unique programs, with tremendous benefit to early-stage researchers, so we strongly encourage those that were not successful in getting their applications funded to apply again.

Be sure to visit the LRP website or attend one of our upcoming events to learn more about eligibility requirements, application dates, and benefits of receiving an NIH LRP award!

• October 3 – LRP Technical Assistance Webinar
• Early November – Ask Me Anything

The Extramural LRP application cycle will close on November 17, 2022.

Click here to visit the LRP website.

LRP Application Tips

• Obtain your NIH eRA Commons ID and make sure your password is current.  An eRA Commons ID will be required to start your application.
• Check out the new application tutorial videos
• Check out the latest LRP Application Guide to learn about application components
• Check out the published guide notices
• Reach out to an NIH LRP Program Officer to discuss your research
• Contact your Institutional Business Official (IBO) at your institution
• Contact an LRP Ambassador
• Application Deadline – November 17, 2022

FY22 Awards for Investments Supporting Partnerships In Recovery Ecosystems (INSPIRE) Initiative Will Help Build & Expand Services in the Recovery Ecosystem

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) awarded $12 million to 33 projects through its Investments Supporting Partnerships In Recovery Ecosystems (INSPIRE) initiative, which aims to address Appalachia’s substance use disorder (SUD) crisis with investments in projects that create or expand services in the recovery ecosystem leading to workforce entry and re-entry.

These INSPIRE awardees will support the SUD recovery ecosystem in 11 Appalachian states by developing and deepening cross-sector recovery-focused partnerships, expanding peer recovery support networks, planning and implementing workforce training programs, strengthening community engagement and wraparound services, and more.

“The substance use disorder crisis isn’t solely a health and family issue—it’s also a workforce development issue, and thus a community issue. At ARC, we’re laser-focused on creating a comprehensive network of supports to help individuals recovering from substance use disorder succeed,” said ARC Federal Co-Chair Gayle Manchin. “INSPIRE projects are tackling the economic impacts of the substance use disorder crisis to grow the region’s labor force, and more importantly, provide hope and purpose for individuals in recovery. I congratulate the 2022 INSPIRE awardees and look forward to the many ways they’ll help our Appalachian friends, neighbors, and communities thrive.”

“The fight against substance abuse has torn apart communities and families throughout the nation, and the ARC’s INSPIRE initiative seeks to establish a holistic recovery ecosystem that will enable recovering individuals to re-enter the workforce while getting the help they need to heal, to recover, and to turn their lives around,” said ARC States’ Co-Chair Governor Larry Hogan of Maryland. “The disease of addiction affects every community across the Appalachian region, and our all-hands-on-deck approach will positively impact the lives of individuals on their journeys to recovery while bringing more jobs and economic development to the region.”

“Beating the overdose epidemic is a key part of President Biden’s Unity Agenda for our Nation, and I applaud the Appalachian Regional Commission for building the recovery support infrastructure to help more Americans reach and maintain recovery,” said Dr. Rahul Gupta, Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. “The President has proclaimed September as National Recovery Month because he knows that when Americans recover from substance use disorder, our Nation becomes stronger and more resilient. That’s why we are focused on expanding the peer recovery support services workforce and eliminating barriers to employment, safe and supportive housing, and education for people in recovery. Today’s funding announcement supports this work, and as the former West Virginia health commissioner, I’m so glad to see this critical investment in the people of the Appalachian states.”

ARC’s Substance Abuse Advisory Council (SAAC) developed initial recommendations to address the disproportionate impact SUD had on the workforce in Appalachia compared to the rest of the country, which resulted in the launch of INSPIRE. Since INSPIRE was established in April of 2021, ARC has invested $28.1 million in 83 projects across 289 Appalachian counties, improving nearly 1.2K businesses and helping prepare nearly 6.5K students and workers for new opportunities in the workforce.

ARC is expecting to issue a request for proposals for the next round of INSPIRE grant opportunities in early 2023. Additional information and resources are available at arc.gov/SUD.

This year, as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of Minority Health (CMS OMH) honors National Hispanic Heritage Month, we will be focusing on the nation’s 60.5 million Hispanics by highlighting some common health disparities facing Hispanic populations and sharing resources to help further health equity.

Hispanic populations suffer from lower rates of health insurance coverage compared to their non-Hispanic counterparts, with nearly 30% of Hispanic adults aged 18 to 64 being uninsured. Like other minority groups, Hispanic populations are disproportionately affected by chronic health conditions, such as diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. Hispanic subpopulations also face their own distinct health disparities including higher rates of smoking among Puerto Rican and Cuban male populations, as well as higher rates of chronic liver disease and cirrhosis among Mexican populations. Additionally, among Hispanic pregnant individuals, the maternal mortality rate increased significantly from 2019 to 2020, largely due to COVID-19 related health disparities.

As Hispanic populations continue to face disparities related to COVID-19 and other health conditions, it is important to have all the information and resources needed to ensure Hispanic patients receive culturally and linguistically competent care from their health care provider and are able to take steps towards better health. Below, please find materials in Spanish, data, resources on language access, culturally and linguistically appropriate services (CLAS), and more. Throughout this month and beyond, we encourage you to review and share these resources to continue to advance health equity for Hispanic populations.

Resources

• Visit the Coverage to Care (C2C) website in Spanish to find consumer-facing resources that are available in Spanish. Be sure to download our newly updated C2C Roadmap to Behavioral Health (Spanish), which serves as a companion guide for mental health and substance use service with the Roadmap to Better Care (Spanish). The newly updated Managing Diabetes: Medicare Coverage and Resources is also available in Spanish and is aimed at helping patients with managing their diabetes and health coverage.
• Read our Disparities in Health Care in Medicare Advantage by Race, Ethnicity, and Sex: April 2022 stratified report, which looks at racial, ethnic, and gender differences in health care experiences and quality of care for people with Medicare Advantage.
• Use the Mapping Medicare Disparities Tool identify areas of disparity between subgroups of people with Medicare (e.g., racial and ethnic groups) in health outcomes, utilization, and spending. This tool is also available in Spanish.
• Review our Understanding the Health Needs of Diverse Groups of Hispanic Medicare Beneficiaries data highlight, which examines the medical needs and challenges of a fast growing Hispanic population.
• Download A Practical Guide to Implementing the National CLAS Standards, which serves to enable health care organizations to implement the National CLAS Standards, improve health equity, and provide practical tools and examples of CLAS.
• Download CMS’s Guide To Developing A Language Access Plan, which is a resource to help organizations develop a plan to provide services to individuals who are non-English speaking or have limited English proficiency.
• Download HHS’s Improving Cultural Competency for Behavioral Health Professionals e-learning program for behavioral health professionals to increase their cultural and linguistic competency.
• To find federal vaccine resources, visit our Immunization and Vaccine Resources webpage and CDC’s COVID-19 Vaccine Webpage in Spanish.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued a final rule applicable to noncitizens who receive or wish to apply for benefits provided by the HHS and States that support low-income families and adults. This rule will help ensure that noncitizens can access health-related benefits and other supplemental government services to which they are entitled by law, without triggering harmful immigration consequences. The final rule will be effective on December 23, 2022.

ReConnect Round 4 Application Workshop

Presented by USDA Rural Development’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS), this 3-day workshop will provide an end-to-end walkthrough of the ReConnect application system.

This workshop will include:

• An in-depth exploration of each section of the online application system
• Step-by-step demonstrations and how-to’s showing how to enter and save data in each section of the application
• Plenty of time for questions and answers at the end of each session

We will present this workshop once. We’ll address questions as time permits during each session and include an updated list of the most common questions on our Frequently Asked Questions page on the ReConnect website.

Slides, a transcript, and a recording of the workshop will be posted at the ReConnect website after the session.

Please note: attendees only need to register once to attend any or all workshop sessions. View the full workshop agenda on the ReConnect website’s events page.

Workshop Dates and Times

• Tuesday, September 13, 2022 from 12:00PM to 5:00PM Eastern
• Wednesday, September 14, 2022 from 10:00AM to 5:15PM Eastern
• Thursday, September 15, 2022 from 10:00AM to 4:15PM Eastern

Register here!

Contact

Please submit any ReConnect questions using the Contact Us Form on the ReConnect website.

The Pennsylvania Developmental Disabilities Council (PADDC) is pleased to announce that the newest Request for Application (RFA) book for 2022-2026 State Plan is now available for you to download, which includes 15 separate grant opportunities. The deadline to submit applications for these grants is Wednesday, October 26, 2022.  Click here to read more and download the RFA book and other application resources.

In addition, PADDC is offering funding on a rolling basis through our Community Grants Program.  Get more information about the Community Grants Program.