This Week in CHCACTion! April 11, 2016

April 11, 2016

Announcements

• HRSA has announced it’s Enhancing Access to Behavioral Health Care Webcast Series. Click here to learn more.
• SAMHSA has released a new pocket guide for health professionals, Medication-Assisted Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder. Click here to download your copy today!
• The Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) has announced a new toll-free number connecting residents seeking treatment and services for an opioid addiction to local walk-in assessment centers. Residents will now be able to call 1-800-563-4086, 24 hours a day, to connect them or a loved one to a walk-in assessment center in their area. Click here for more information.
• Registration is open for the NACHC Corporate Compliance Training, presented by Jacki Leifer and Adam Falcone of the law firm Feldsman, Tucker, Leifer, Fidell, LLP. The training will be held from Monday, April 11^th – Tuesday, April 12th in South Portland, Maine. Click here for more information.
• NACHC proudly offers health centers the Rev Cycle 360 training! This two-day training provides in-depth guidance to key finance and operations staff on the unique and complex health center revenue cycle management. Click here for registration information.
• Consultants Providing Direct TA to Grantees/Mock OSV. BPHC and MSCG are providing clarification regarding the “Mock OSV” policy reminder included in the September 2015 e-news. BPHC will not use MSCG contract funds to pay for consultants to conduct Mock OSVs or provide training/technical assistance on the OSV process. Also consultants who are contacted by a grantee or PCA to provide such services should clearly communicate that they are not representing BPHC or MSCG. Grantees and PCAs should first contact their BPHC Project Officer for assistance with the OSV self-assessment and/or questions regarding the OSV process.
• The Connecticut Coalition for Oral Health published a new website. FluorideCT.com is a resource for anyone in Connecticut who is looking for the history of the facts of water fluoridation in the state.
• CHCACT is Hiring. Check our job bank for opportunities to work at CHCACT or Federally Qualified Health Centers in Connecticut.
• Project ECHO, is looking for participants! Project ECHO is a video based intervention that joins primary care medical and behavioral health providers and specialist to discuss cases and brief didactics to improve health outcomes for patients with complex conditions. Click here to learn more.
  

Trainings, Webinars & Conferences

• Please check our Calendar of Events for upcoming trainings!

Funding Opportunities

• Check out the new CHCACT Funding Opportunities page here!
• NEW! The Aetna Foundation seeks to support communities’ efforts to become healthier places to live, work, learn, play and pray. The Cultivating Healthy Communities program will support projects that benefit underserved, low-income, and minority communities. Learn More!
• The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is accepting applications for Targeted Capacity Expansion: Medication Assisted Treatment-Prescription Drug Opioid Addiction (MAT-PDOA) grants totaling up to $33 million over three years. Learn More.
• The National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) plans to make 5-10 short-term awards to Primary Care Associations (PCAs), Health Center Controlled Networks (HCCNs), and Federally Qualified Health Centers and look-a-likes (FQHCs) and that are NACHC ORGANIZATIONAL MEMBERS. Learn More.
• The RGK Foundation awards grants to nonprofit organizations in the general areas of education, community and health/medicine. These grants are not geographically-restricted and are awarded on an ongoing basis. Learn more!
• The Cigna World of Difference Grants Program looks for nonprofits with which to collaborate on projects to overcome barriers to their health and well-being. Learn more!

Ask CHCACT!

“Ask CHCACT” features Outreach & Enrollment and other questions from health center staff, answered by your favorite CHCACT staff members! Send your questions to ask@chcact.org!

Arianne Cacciatore answers this week’s question:

Q: Many clients have been coming in with letters stating their insurance plans have cancelled due to nonpayment, despite many clients telling CACs that they have sent in payments. During Open Enrollment each CCR handled this problem by escalating them to the IRD. CCR’s will no longer be allowed to escalate these cases. What is an alternative way to address this issue? 

A: AHCT issues Fast Alert 16-044 stating that CCR’s must not reinstate QHP coverage due to non-payment of premiums. Instead a CCR must review the enrollment dates of the application. If the consumer has an Enrollment Status of “Cancelled” their coverage was never initiated because the first month’s premium was never paid. CCRS have ne instructed to tell clients to contact their insurance companies. CAC can help contact the insurance companies with the clients as the IRD will no longer be contacting the insurance companies for clients.    

Upcoming CHCACT Meetings

SNAP Outreach Worker Monthly Meeting. The SNAP Outreach Worker Monthly Meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 12, 2016 from 1:00PM to 3:00PM at the Community Health Center Association of Connecticut (1484 Highland Avenue, Suite 2, Cheshire, CT 06410). For more registration information, please contact Gabrielle Torres.

Youth Advisory Committee. The Youth Advisory Committee meeting will be held on Thursday, April 14, 2016 from 3:00PM to 5:00PM. For more registration information, please contact Kathy Pitner.

Community Health Emergency Response Network Webinar. The CHERN Workgroup will meet via Webinar on Wednesday, April 20, 2016 1:30PM to 2:30PM. For more registration information, please contact Claudine Constant.

All CHCACT Staff can be reached by calling 860.667.7820.

This Week in Health Policy News

Here is a sampling of health policy news from around the state. If you see something in your local newspaper that you would like featured here in future weeks, please contact Deb Polun at dpolun@chcact.org. Check out all the Health Policy News from the past month here!

Featured Stories

4.11.16 CT Health I-Team: Low-Income Diabetics Paying High Price for Insulin (feat. Fair Haven)

State Health News

4.6.16 CT Mirror: Budget Plan Offers Painful Cuts But Remains Out of Balance
4.6.16 CT NewsJunkie: Op-Ed – Mammograms Save Lives; Don’t Let Budget Issues Limit Access
4.5.16 CT Mirror: Study – State Employee Wellness Plan Increased Use of Preventive Care
4.5.16 CT NewsJunkie: Barnes & Bristol Hospital President Bicker Over Medicaid Funding

Resources

CHCACT maintains and regularly updates resources on clinical issues, human resources, HIPAA, SNAP and more! Click here to check out CHCACT’s Resources!*

• 2014 UDS data for FQHCs are available here!
• The TB Toolkit for CHCs/FQHCs is a web-based product that includes tools that can be used by community providers as well as TB programs and health departments for outreach to community health centers. Tools include existing resources that have been developed by the Global TB Institute, the other RTMCCs and CDC. The toolkit is meant to be a dynamic product which can be continually updated based on the availability of new information and user feedback. The first draft of the toolkit is posted at: http://globaltb.njms.rutgers.edu/educationalmaterials/tookitfqhc.html.
• The Connecticut Department of Public Health has new resources, including data, for chronic diseases on its web site. Check out the information here!
• Weekly Outreach & Enrollment Newsletter. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) produce the CMS Weekly Assister Newsletter. This weekly Newsletter is the best resource for O/E staff to stay up-to-date on information on health insurance marketplace changes, frequently asked questions, and general advice. To sign up, email CACQuestions@cms.hhs.gov with the subject line: “Add to listserv”
• Scope of Project Webpage: HRSA has released a new “Scope of Project” Page on the BPHC website. This page provides a “one-stop-shop” for Health Center Program Scope of Project and Change-in-Scope policy, process, and resources. View the new Scope of Project webpage.
• Capital Link Publications. As part of their assistance to health centers, Capital Link has developed a collection of resource publications to assist health centers in accomplishing specific tasks related to the capital development process. These publications are provided to Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Primary Care Associations (PCAs) free of charge. Their resources, including publications, reports, and past webinars are available here.

* Some Resources are password-protected. If you would like a password for www.www.chcact.org, please contact Tasheenah Brown.

Events/Educational Opportunities