The National Rural Health Association (NRHA) is proud to announce that it has received a one-time, unrestricted donation in the amount of $7 million from philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott.

“These funds will be utilized in the priority areas of rural leadership development, health equity, state capacity building, and educational and policy programing,” says NRHA CEO Alan Morgan. “NRHA staff will work directly with the association’s elected member leaders to complete a rural health environmental scan and establish a process to ensure these funds are allocated to projects that will demonstrate a clear outcome and provide a direct benefit to the health of rural communities.”

At a time when the pandemic has particularly impacted rural communities and health care, this investment will help NRHA improve health care access and outcomes for all rural Americans.

NRHA has a strong grassroots network that helped secure more than $21 billion in emergency funding for rural health care providers, worked directly with federal agencies to boost rural COVID-19 vaccine confidence and uptake, and ensured vital legislative and regulatory changes to allow rural patients to receive health care via telehealth during the pandemic. NRHA has also worked directly with rural hospitals, rural health clinics, and federally qualified health centers across the country to ensure they have the resources to care for their communities. This generous donation will empower the association to provide even more long-term support beyond the public health emergency.

“This gift is a recognition of the history of outstanding work that NRHA has undertaken in addressing rural health issues and rural health disparities,” says NRHA President Beth O’Connor. “The funds will greatly expand our reach and ability to improve the health care system for 62 million Americans who call rural home.”

Backed by longstanding support from private and public partners, NRHA and its members have initiated and implemented critical rural programming that comprises three-fourths of the association’s overall revenue. These include developing and supporting the now 43 state rural health associations across the country since 1992, training and creating a network of more than 2,000 community health workers, developing rural medical education programming, and convening and establishing border health and oral health initiatives. Additionally, for 27 years NRHA has convened the Health Equity Council and Health Equity Conference – the only event of its kind in the nation – creating a forum for vital discussions related to underserved rural multiracial, multicultural, LGBTQ+, veteran, homeless, and other populations.

This unprecedented gift is the largest unrestricted donation in NRHA’s 45-year history and will be utilized to further the mission of the organization. Scott does not accept solicitations or proposals from organizations.

About NRHA
NRHA is a nonprofit organization working to improve the health and well-being of rural Americans and provide leadership on rural health issues through advocacy, communications, education, and research. NRHA’s membership consists of diverse individuals and organizations, all of whom share the common bond of an interest in rural health.

The Colgate-Palmolive Company has launched a public health initiative, “Know Your OQ™,”  to empower health professionals and consumers to understand and improve their oral health quotient (OQ). The initiative promotes compelling information about the global oral health crisis and provides oral health resources for primary care physicians, nurses, and educational leaders, as well as consumers, to improve oral hygiene, encourage healthier habits, and promote overall health. The interactive assessment is free.

Click here for more information and to take the assessment.

The Technical Assistance and Service Center (TASC) has partnered with the Northwest Regional Telehealth Resource Center (NRTRC) to produce an update to the Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Telehealth Guide. Recent federal guidance has been included in this edition. The updated guide provides information and guidance for assessing and implementing telehealth services for CAHs, including purchasing, staffing, maintenance, reimbursement, and reporting for outpatient services. For additional guidance on using this tool, please see the introductory webinar that was held with the original release of the guide in September 2021.

The guide includes best practices and resources developed by subject matter experts (SME), technical consultants, and telehealth resource centers (TRCs). The objective is to provide Flex Programs and CAHs with a comprehensive guide that will allow them a singular point of reference for CAH telehealth standards with direct content and links to appropriate public and federal resources.

Further questions and concerns can be directed to tasc@ruralcenter.org.

Count Question Resolution Program

The Census Bureau began accepting and researching case submissions for the 2020 Census Count Question Resolution Operation (CQR) in January. CQR gives tribal, state, and local officials the opportunity to request the Census Bureau review their official 2020 Census boundaries and/or housing counts by block for potential processing errors.

Any corrections made will not impact the apportionment counts, redistricting data, or any other 2020 Census data products. They would, however, be used in the Census Bureau’s Population Estimates and other future programs that use 2020 Census data. The Census Bureau has provided Participant Guides on their website to assist government units prepare their CQR submission.

Governments that would like to request a review of group quarters population counts would be able to through a separate proposed program, the 2020 Post-Census Group Quarters Review (2020 PCGQR). Under this proposal, the Census Bureau will accept 2020 PCGQR cases submitted by tribal, state, and local government units from Spring 2022 through Summer 2023.

American Community Survey (ACS)

1-Year Data:

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Census Bureau changed the 2020 American Community Survey (ACS) release schedule. Instead of providing the standard 1-year data products, the Census Bureau released experimental estimates from the 1-year data. This includes a limited number of data tables for the nation, states, and the District of Columbia. The 2020 ACS 1-year experimental estimates are posted on the 2020 ACS 1-Year Experimental Data Tables page; they are not available on data.census.gov.

5-Year Data:

On March 17, the U.S. Census Bureau will release the standard, full suite of 2016–2020 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year data products—down to the block group level. Following pandemic-related data collection disruptions, the Census Bureau revised its methodology to reduce nonresponse bias in data collected in 2020. After evaluating the effectiveness of this methodology, the Census Bureau determined the resulting data are fit for public release, government and business uses, and understanding the social and economic characteristics of the U.S. population and economy.

Disclosure Avoidance

The Census Bureau is working on the next phase of 2020 Census data product development. The Updated 2020 Census Data Product Planning Crosswalk is available. The Crosswalk compares the 2020 Census proposed 2020 Census Demographic Profile, Demographic and Housing Characteristics File (DHC), and Detailed Demographic and Housing Characteristics File (Detailed DHC) tables to the published 2010 Census tables. The Bureau plans two releases of demonstration data for the DHC and Detailed DHC products. With feedback from these releases, they plan to begin production of data products in Summer 2022.

During Calendar Year (CY) 2021, Pennsylvania (exclusive of Philadelphia) reported a 28% increase in Early Syphilis from CY 2020. The reported 1,418 cases in CY 2021 represents the highest number of Early Syphilis cases in more than 30 years. Additionally, during CY 2021, there was also a reported 36% increase in Early Syphilis cases in females of whom 90% were child-bearing age. Read more.

After several COVID-related delays, the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) has set a December 31 deadline for the healthcare industry to support apps that store records electronically, such as Apple Health. This is part of the 21^st Century Cures Act, and it works both ways: Health IT developers will need standardized APIs and FHIR technology to support data exchange and interoperability, and providers will be expected to use APIs and FHIR technology. Patients won’t be required to use apps, but medical offices will at least have to support electronic exchanges using the FHIR standards. What remains to be seen is how this will be enforced.

The University of Pennsylvania has announced the Leonard A. Lauder Community Care Nurse Practitioner Program, which will recruit and prepare a diverse cadre of nurse practitioners to provide primary care to individuals and families in underserved communities. The $125 million donation by Leonard A. Lauder, chairman emeritus of The Estée Lauder Companies, to create this first-of-its-kind, tuition-free program is the largest gift ever to an American nursing school. Lauder is a Penn alumnus.

The Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) has created the following web-based tools for certain health professions:

• Online Resource for Licensure of Health Professionals. As telehealth usage increased during the pandemic, FORHP funded new work with the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards to reduce the burden of multi-state licensure. The site provides up-to-date information on emergency regulation and licensing in each state for psychologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists assistants and social workers.

Mobilizing Health Care Workforce via Telehealth. ProviderBridge.org was created by the Federation of State Medical Boards through the CARES Act and the FORHP-supported Licensure Portability Grant Program. The site provides up-to-date information on emergency regulation and licensing by state as well as a provider portal to connect volunteer health care professionals to state agencies and health care entities.