Michigan Primary Care
Association
Budget & Finance Committee
Conference Call
Health Policy Committee
Conference Call
Michigan First Credit Union
Lathrup Village, MI
Health Policy Committee
Conference Call
2010 MPCA Annual Conference
Upcoming State &
National Events
Click here for a list of upcoming events to be held by
other organizations in Michigan and across the country.
The MPCA e-Update is a weekly
e-bulletin intended to keep MPCA members updated on issues important to
Community Health Centers. Please feel free to forward this to interested
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organizations does not represent an endorsement by MPCA, and opinions
expressed by outside authors are not necessarily official positions or
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Michigan lawmakers returned to
Lansing on Wednesday, July 21 but made no progress on resolving the FY 2011
state budget. Whether or not Congress extends the enhanced FMAP rate,
which would give Michigan an estimated $560 million in additional federal
funds, continues to significantly impact budget decisions. Meanwhile,
Senate Republicans are drafting plans that include no revenue and more
budget cuts to programs covered by the state's general fund, should the
FMAP not be extended.
The Michigan Primary Care
Association Community HealthCorps program is among 25 organizations in
Michigan to receive AmeriCorps funding from the Corporation for National
and Community Service for Fiscal Year 2011. It will receive $233,992
to place 18 members at Community Health Centers across the state in the
coming year, as it moves in a new direction by providing support for
patient and community navigation.
Michigan is among 49 states, the
District of Columbia, and five territories to receive HHS funding under the
Affordable Care Act to support evidence-based home visiting programs
focused on improving the health of children and families. Michigan
will receive over $2 million. Through the program, nurses, social
workers, or other professionals will meet with at-risk families in their
homes, evaluate the families' circumstances, and connect families with
assistance that can make a real difference in a child's health,
development, and ability to learn - such as health care, developmental
services for children, early education, parenting skills, child abuse
prevention, and nutrition education or assistance.
DMC to Start Construction
Projects
Detroit Medical Center (DMC)
announced this week that it will start 15 construction projects costing
$500 million as soon as its sale to Vanguard Health Systems Inc. is
complete. Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox must still approve the
deal; his review is expected to be completed by early September.
The MDCH Division of
Immunization will hold the following eight conferences this fall: October 5
(Grand Rapids), October 6 (Kalamazoo), October 12 (Gaylord), October 14
(Marquette), October 26 (Bay City), November 12 (East Lansing), November 16
(Troy), and November 17 (Dearborn). A keynote speaker from CDC will
present a Vaccine Update and also participate in a Troubleshooting Panel at
every conference location. More details are posted at www.michigan.gov/immunize
(under Provider Information). Space is limited and most of the
conferences fill up in advance every year, so early registration is
encouraged.
Attending and hosting candidate
forums are effective and permissible ways for nonprofits to get to know the
candidates in their area and to educate them about Community Health
Centers. Click
here for a list of candidate forums and plan to attend one in your
area. If a forum hasn't been scheduled, consider coordinating one.
Primary Election August 3
The State Primary Election will
be held August 3 (the last day to register to vote in the Primary Election
was July 6). Click here for registration information or to view a
sample ballot for upcoming elections. Click here for information about Health Centers
educating and registering voters, and to download materials.
The annual Alliance for
Immunization in Michigan (AIM) Outstanding Achievement award eligibility
includes individuals, community groups, or organizations whose work
demonstrates contributions to raising and improving immunizations,
providing outstanding and recognizable improvement in the immunization
process, and/or promotes the cause of immunizations by involving providers
and communities in immunization programs. Nominations must be
submitted by close of business on August 6. Click
here to submit a nomination.
HHS Secretary Sebelius announced
this week the appointment of a committee to review and update the criteria
used to define medically underserved areas (MUAs) and health professional
shortage areas (HPSAs). Among the 28
appointees are stakeholders from Community Health Centers and rural
health clinics, and health care practitioners, special populations with
unique health care needs, and technical experts in the area of research in
health care access and statistical methods.
After months of anticipation,
the HHS released the Meaningful Use Final Rule on July 13. Meaningful
Use rules establish criteria for using electronic health records that
Michigan health care providers will have to meet to claim up to $63,750 in
federal stimulus dollars. HRSA is hosting a webinar today (July 23)
titled, "The Meaningful Use Rule and the Safety Net Community" at
2 pm. Click
here to register for the webinar.
The House Labor-HHS Subcommittee
on Appropriations released the mark-up of its annual spending bill.
The proposal sets the FY 2011 spending levels for all discretionary health
programs located within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),
including the Health Centers program. (Source: NACHC)
Affordable Care Act Includes New
Preventive Care Rules
The new rules require private
health plans to cover evidence-based preventive services and eliminate cost
sharing for preventive care. Regardless of insurance coverage, CHC
patients can access a range of preventive services that include HIV
testing, mammograms, and cervical cancer screenings.
NIH Scientists Advance Universal
Flu Vaccine
In experiments with mice,
ferrets and monkeys, scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Diseases (NIAID) used a two-step immunization approach to elicit
infection-fighting antibodies that attacked a diverse array of influenza
virus strains. Director of NIAID, Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. stated: "this
significant advance lays the groundwork for the development of a vaccine to
provide long-lasting protection against any strain of influenza."
(Source: FluBytes,
MDCH, 7/16/10)
NATIONAL HEALTH
CENTER WEEK
With just 15 days until the
kick-off of National Health Center Week on August 8, a record number of
Michigan Community Health Centers are planning events across the state,
some of which will be attended by federal, state, and local officials. Click here for a list of those events. It's not
too late to get your event posted at www.healthcenterweek.org
- email details to dhughes@mpca.net.
NACHC has developed communication tools to help you spread the word about
your event - click
here for customizable press release and media advisory templates, as
well as National Health Center Week 2010 message points.
HEALTH CENTERS IN THE
NEWS
This article highlights the
fndings from a recently released report policy research brief of the Geiger
Gibson/RCHN Community Health Foundation Research Collaborative at the
George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services.
A brand new facility to serve as
a one-stop shop for medical services could be coming to Flint's north
side. Hamilton Community Health Network is outgrowing its main clinic
and is planning to build a new facility about 10 blocks south.
For the past month, as many as
35 Bunker and Steele Middle School students have learned firsthand that
growing a garden is more than watering and weeding lettuce, tomatoes and
other stuff that's good for them. "Growing Goods" is a
program put together in a collaborative effort of Muskegon County social
service agencies, including Hackley Community Care Center, government
entities and public schools.
Poverty & HIV Strongly
Linked (CDC)
Regardless of race or ethnicity,
heterosexuals living in low-income communities are up to five times more
likely to be HIV-positive than the rest of the U.S. population. In
related news, the White House released its National
HIV/AIDS Strategy last week.
HHS released "The National
Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy" aimed at making health
information and services easier to understand and use by improving the
jargon-filled language, dense writing, and complex explanations that often
fill patient handouts, medical forms, health web sites, and recommendations
to the public.
Spirometry is clinically
indicated for asthma diagnosis and management. It is also now a
required HEDIS measure for COPD. A team at the University of
Washington has developed a set of interactive online resources designed to
efficiently train clinicians and support staff to successfully perform and
interpret spirometry tests in the office setting. A limited number of
National Asthma Control Initiative sponsored licenses/scholarships are
available to safety net providers. Enrollment for the course beginning in
2011 is available. Learn more at www.spirometrytraining.org!
Funder: Office of Public
Health and Science
Click here for a list of funding opportunities posted
on the MPCA web site.
Click
here for a list of CHC career
opportunities posted on the MPCA web site.
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