This Week in CHCACTion! April 18, 2016

April 18, 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.
• 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!
• 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: Now that open enrollment is over many CAC have reported less frequent correspondence with the IRD about pending insurance submissions.  Consumers’ cases are being held up and some can’t get to the enrollment stage. What should CACs do if they have not heard about the status of a case and patients are waiting for coverage?

A: The IRD has asked all CACs still needing assistance to RESUBMIT the DESK REVIEW to IRD.Outreach@ct.gov and CC Catherine.maldonado@ct.gov. In  the subject line, please write “what is the status of…” followed by the ticket number (or application number if you do not have a ticket number).  Catherine will be able to tell you if the ticket is stuck in JIRA (the IT database that is outsourced) or if the delay is due to something else. Please remember to keep me posted if you are having issues!

Upcoming CHCACT Meetings

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.

CYFAN Steering Committee. The CYFAN Steering Committee meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 26, 2016 from 10:00AM to 12:30PM at Generation Family Health Center (40 Mansfield Avenue. Willimantic, CT 06226). For more imformation,  please contact Kathy Pitner.

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

4.18.16 Yale Daily News: 200 Walk for HIV/AIDS (feat. K. Wagner/Fair Haven)
4.15.16 UConn Today: Dr. Bruce Gould Named Medical Director at CHCACT

State Health News

4.18.16 CT Mirror: Critics – Proposed Children’s Dental Cut Threatens CT’s Turnaround
4.18.16 Hartford Business Journal: Hospitals, Others Beef Up Data Security Amid Tougher Oversight
4.18.16 Hartford Business Journal Op-Ed: State Needs a Human Services Lockbox
4.15.16 CT NewsJunkie: CT Comes Together to Battle Opioid & Heroin Crisis
4.14.16 CT Health I-Team: In CT, Suffocation Deaths “Distinctive Injury”
4.12.16 CT Health I-Team: Nursing Board Recommends Closing Vinal Tech LPN Program
 

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