Rural Spotlight

USDA Helps Expand Access to Rural Health Care in Missouri

July 31, 2023

USDA Helps Expand Access to Rural Health Care in Missouri

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development State Director in Missouri Kyle Wilkens announced that USDA is expanding access to health care for more than 102,000 people living in rural Missouri through the Emergency Rural Health Care Grant Program.

“Investments in rural health care are absolutely invaluable,” Wilkens said. “Access to affordable, state-of-the-art health care can be challenging to provide in rural areas of our state, and investments made through USDA’s Emergency Rural Health Care Grant Program help to bridge that gap.”

Big Springs Medical Association Inc., with support from the Rural Maternity and Obstetric Management – Southeast Missouri Partnership consortium, will use an $8.4 million grant to construct a three-story facility to house:

  • Obstetrics
  • Maternal fetal medicine
  • Pediatric specialists
  • Dentistry
  • Behavioral health
  • Substance abuse disorder
  • Community health and more.

This centralized hub will allow these departments to better connect with satellite clinics across the state and provide a central location for in-house support services to provide high-quality patient care.

This investment will help address regional rural health care challenges by better assisting some of the most remote areas of the state. These solutions will build a stronger, more sustainable rural health care system for the state’s small towns and communities.

Background: Emergency Rural Health Care Grants

Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in March 2021 to deliver immediate economic relief to people impacted by the pandemic. Within months after the Act’s passage, USDA responded quickly by making this funding available to ensure the long-term availability of rural health care services.

In August 2021, USDA made the Emergency Rural Health Care Grants available through the American Rescue Plan Act to help rural health care facilities, tribes and communities expand access to health care services and nutrition assistance.

The assistance is helping provide immediate relief to support rural hospitals, health care clinics and local communities. USDA is administering the funds through Rural Development’s Community Facilities Program, which helps residents in rural areas build or improve essential community infrastructure and purchase or replace equipment needed for essential community services.

More than 100 types of projects are eligible for Community Facilities funding.

Eligible applicants include:

  • Municipalities,
  • Public bodies
  • Nonprofit organizations and federally recognized Native American tribes.

Projects must be in rural areas with a population of 20,000 or less.

To learn more about Community Facilities Program funding opportunities, contact your local USDA Rural Development office. Also see the Community Facilities Direct Loan Program Guidance Book for Applicants (PDF, 669 KB) for a detailed overview of the application process.

Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural, tribal and high-poverty areas.

Contact USDA Rural Development

Information on programs available through USDA Rural Development is available by visiting www.rd.usda.gov/mo, by calling (573) 876-0976, or by emailing RDMissouri@usda.gov. Stay current by following @RD_Missouri on Twitter.

USDA Rural Development has 25 offices across the state to serve the 2.2 million residents living in rural Missouri. Office locations include a state office in Columbia, along with local offices in Butler, Charleston, Chillicothe, Clinton, Dexter, Eldon, Farmington, Higginsville, Houston, Kennett, Kirksville, Maryville, Mexico, Moberly, Neosho, New London, Poplar Bluff, Richmond, Rolla, Sedalia, Springfield, St. Joseph, Troy, and West Plains.

Emergency Rural Health Care Grants

Community Facilities Programs

Swing Bed Culture and Attention to Wellness Vital to Rural Healthcare

July 31, 2023

Swing Bed Culture and Attention to Wellness Vital to Rural Healthcare

Allevant, developed by Mayo clinic and Select Medical, is launching a cohort of “Project Swing Bed on the MENDS®,” a Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Shared Learning Collaborative. Participating CAHs will have access to Allevant staff, tools and resources to maximize their Swing Bed program and begin to implement MENDS®, a wellness program for healthcare staff and post-acute patients.

Expected Outcomes

  • Improved Health Outcomes
    • Shortened post-acute length of stay
    • Low rate of post-acute patients discharged back to acute care (readmission from post-acute setting)
    • High level of post-acute patients discharged back to independent settings (home or assisted living)
    • Increased staff and community focus on wellness behaviors
    • Increased patient wellness, improved long-term health
  • Expanded Capacity for Essential Health Care Services
    • Increased utilization of CAH swing beds
    • Increase in confidence and capabilities of rural health workforce to provide post-acute care services locally
    • New focus on wellness strategies for rural staff and post-acute patients
    • New processes to facilitate rural primary care practices to support continuation of patient-identified wellness strategies for newly discharged rural post-acute patients
  • Increased Financial Sustainability
    • CAH – Increase census and revenue
    • Long term reduction in costs associated with increased staff wellness
    • Lower Medicare costs per patient day.

“Critical Access Hospitals can provide post-acute recovery via Transitional Care/Swing Bed better than virtually anyone else. Their competitive advantage is their culture of safety,” says Dr. Mark Lindsay, pulmonologist, Assistant Professor at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, and Medical Director of Allevant Solution, LLC. “CAHs outperform larger hospitals in the culture of safety surveys. Handoffs and transitions are two areas with consistently low scores across healthcare, and post-acute care is all about handoffs and transitions.”

Jordan Tenenbaum, President of Allevant and NRHA Fellow, states he is, “concerned for the future viability of rural hospitals, more than 30% of which are at risk of closure. It is a tremendous benefit for larger hospitals to partner with smaller rural CAH Transitional Care programs to ensure rural patients admitted to larger hospitals for specialty care can be cared for closer to home.”

Allevant has participated in federally and state-funded grants throughout the country and will continue to identify opportunities to support rural providers with Transitional Care and MENDS® health and wellness programs.

If you have an interest in participating in the first cohort of Project Swing Bed on the MENDS®, contact Jordan Tenenbaum to learn more today.

Learn More

NRHA Webinar: Swing Bed Culture and Attention to Wellness Vital to Rural Healthcare, a Transitional Care Model

July 21, 2023

NRHA Webinar: Swing Bed Culture and Attention to Wellness Vital to Rural Healthcare, a Transitional Care Model

Allevant, a joint venture between Mayo Clinic and Select Medical, helps Critical Access Hospitals by developing post-acute Transitional Care programs using available Swing Beds. Focused on helping patients transition to their highest level of independence, Transitional Care is a program that involves the patient and family, makes available the full resources of the Critical Access Hospital and focuses on measured outcomes and evidence-based processes to ensure patients get the best care possible.

Allevant has supported approximately 100 Critical Access Hospitals across 22 states including both independent and part of health systems. Our clients have cared for over 12,000 patients representing more than 158,000 swing bed days. With a strong focus on quality, outcomes, and growth, our clients saw an average growth in swing bed days of 55% by the second year. 64% of patients were categorized as complex medical or complex surgical which is a growing patient population, and only 7% of Transitional Care patients were discharged directly back to acute care during a program stay of less than 30 days. 76% of patients were discharged from Transitional Care back to independence. The average patient rating was 4.84 out of 5 when asked if patients would “recommend the program to others”.

When: Thursday, July 27, 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. CST

Register

NRHA Webinar: Unlocking Value-Based Care: The Critical Role of Team-Based Care

July 21, 2023

NRHA Webinar: Unlocking Value-Based Care: The Critical Role of Team-Based Care

Join this exclusive webinar to discover the power of team-based care in rural healthcare. Our expert speakers include Fred Wallisch, Signify Health’s VP and ACO Medical Director, who specializes in clinical oversight, utilization goal setting and innovative strategies for improved patient care. Catherine Chua, Chief Medical and innovative strategies for improved patient care. Catherine Chua, Chief Medical Officer at Davis Health System, West Virginia, with extensive experience in Osteopathic Family Medicine and Integrative Medicine, will provide insights into rural healthcare and patient-centered approaches, and Dr. Steven Reeves, Internal Medicine specialist from Greater Regional Health, will offer practical knowledge on the positive impact of team-based care on provider morale, retention, and buy-in.

Learning Objectives

  • Understand the role of team-based care in meeting value-based care requirements
  • Discover how a standardized approach improves annual wellness visit rates, chronic care management, and clinical documentation
  • Explore the benefits of team-based care for provider morale, retention, and buy-in

When: Tuesday, July 25, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. CST

Register Here to join this concise and informative webinar to enhance healthcare delivery in your rural health organization.

Upcoming Swing Bed Learning Action Network Meetings with Stroudwater

July 21, 2023

Upcoming Swing Bed Learning Action Network Meetings with Stroudwater

Stroudwater Associates is hosting two more Swing Bed Learning Action Network (LAN) meetings this summer. Below are the LAN meeting topics and links to register.

  • July 28, 12 – 1 p.m. CT – Register Here
    • This education will provide foundational best practice discharge planning processes necessary to support a successful patient discharge thereby, reducing readmissions and unnecessary emergency department visits.
  • August 25, 12 – 1 p.m. CT – Register Here
    • This education will provide interdisciplinary steps to assist your Swing Bed team in formally determining what type of patients are appropriate for your swing bed program, decreasing variability in decision-making, improving efficiency, and growing your program.

Seeking Public Comment – Home Visiting Evidence of Effectiveness (HomVEE)

July 17, 2023

Seeking Public Comment – Home Visiting Evidence of Effectiveness (HomVEE)

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) seeks public comment on proposed revisions to the procedures and standards that guide the Home Visiting Evidence of Effectiveness (HomVEE) systematic review. ACF is committed to a rigorous and transparent review process. The proposed revisions include procedures related to virtual home visiting research. They also include updates to clarify HomVEE’s definition of subgroups, limit the eligibility of certain findings for review, and strengthen standards for validity.

View proposed changes to HomVEE Handbook of Procedures and Standards (Version 2.2)

Comments are due by July 28, 2023, 5:00 PM – Please submit comments via email to HomVEE@dcf.hhs.gov.

 

Register Now – Informational Webinar for Tribal Communities

July 17, 2023

Register Now – Informational Webinar for Tribal Communities

The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline (NMMHH) team is please to invite you to an informational webinar on Monday, July 31, 2023, at 1:00 PM EST to provide insights on how the hotline works, key metrics in the first year, and what your community members can expect when you refer them to the Hotline.

Join the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline to hear how tribal communities can benefit from this 24/7, free, confidential service. American Indian/Alaska native leaders will provide perspective on the maternal health landscape and what tribal community members can expect when calling the Hotline.

The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline provides free, confidential, 24/7 emotional support, resources, and referrals to pregnant and postpartum individuals facing mental health challenges, and their loved ones. Professional counselors offer support via phone and text in English and Spanish. Interpreter services are available in 60 additional languages, and a relay service is available for people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing.

When: July 31, 1:00 p.m. EST

Register Now

MCH Training and Research Alert, Volume 18:07 Available Now

July 17, 2023

MCH Training and Research Alert, Volume 18:07 Available Now

The Maternal Child Health (MCH) Training and Research Alert, Volume 18:07 is now available.

Topics include:

HRSA Funding Opportunities:

Informational:

Training & Educational

Training & Educational Webinars

Training & Educational: Webinar Archive

Click Here for Recent Issues of the Alert

Tips and Tools for Completing the Pediatric Specialty Loan Repayment Application

July 17, 2023

Tips and Tools for Completing the Pediatric Specialty Loan Repayment Application

The Pediatric Specialty Loan Repayment Program application is open now through July 20 at 7:30 p.m. ET

Gathering and submitting the necessary documents is an important part of the application process. Review the criteria listed in the Application Program Guidance (pages 37-39) and have the following documents ready.

  • Proof of Status as a United States citizen, national or a permanent resident – You may include a copy of a birth certificate, the ID page of a current United States passport, a certificate of citizenship, or naturalization of copy of Permanent Resident Card (greencard). Note: Copies of a driver’s license or a Social Security card are not acceptable documents.
  • Health Professional License, Certification or Registration – Submit proof of tour current, full, permanent, unencumbered, unrestricted health professional license, certificate or registration (whichever is applicable), with an expiration date in the state in which you intend to practice under or from any state if practicing in a federal site.
  • Health Professional License, Certification or Registration – Submit proof of completion of your health professional degree.
  • Loan Information Verification – Provide two types of documentation for each loan that is being submitted for consideration.

Account Statement. This document is used to provide current information on your eligible loans. Often borrowers receive monthly statements indicating the status of your loan balance.

Disbursement Report. This report is used to verify the originating loan information.

  • Additional Supplemental Documentation (if applicable):
    • Specialty Certification
    • Postgraduate Training
    • Completion Verification
    • Postgraduate Training Acceptance or Good Standing Verification
    • Substance Use Disorder Certification/License
    • Verification of Existing Service Obligation

Final Q & A Session:

Thursday, July 20, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. ET

Join on Zoom

Complete Your Application

For application or password reset questions contact: Customer Care Center 1-800-221-9393 or TTY: 1-877-897-9910

Registration is Open for the 2023 NTP Virtual Workshops

July 14, 2023

Registration is Open for the 2023 NTP Virtual Workshops

Registration for the 2023 CMS National Training Program (NTP) virtual workshops is now open.

Please click on the hyperlinked event title(s) to register for each event that you are interested in attending. You will be prompted to log into the NTP webpage. To log in, use the same email address and password you use to register for all NTP webinars. If you don’t have an account you’ll need to create on before you can complete registration.

After you register for an event, you’ll get an email confirmation which will include a calendar appointment.

Please email NTPHelp@cms.hhs.gov if you need help with your account or registration.

Sessions will start at 1:00 p.m. and conclude no later than 3:30 p.m. ET.

Sessions will be recorded for later viewing.

Training Schedule:

July 2023

This workshop will explain drug coverage under the different parts of Medicare and describe how Medicare drug coverage (Part D) works, coverage rules, eligibility, enrollment, and Extra Help.

This workshop will explain Medicare health plan options other than Original Medicare with a primary focus on Medicare Advantage (sometimes called Medicare Part C).

 

Qualifying for Medicare based on a disability is different from qualifying based on End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) or age. This workshop will explore the enrollment process and unique scenarios like returning to work while getting disability benefits. We’ll also discuss programs that can help with medical costs.

August 2023

This workshop will explain different payers’ responsibilities when people have both Medicare and certain other types of health and/or prescription drug coverage.

This workshop will walk through examples of Medicare coverage scenarios in a casework format to evaluate the case, review possible resources and options, and discuss appropriate solutions.

This workshop will explain Medicare for people with End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). It includes information on eligibility and enrollment, coverage and health plan options, and provides additional resources.

This workshop will explain tax-favored health programs and basic information about how those programs work with Medicare.

This workshop will demonstrate how to shop and compare Medicare plan options using Medicare Plan Finder on Medicare.gov.

This workshop will explain CMS current priorities, initiatives, and recent programmatic updates.

NOTES:

  • Registration requests will be considered on a first-come, first-served basis until each session reaches capacity. The number of attendees from the same organization may be limited. If any session reaches capacity, we’ll work to schedule an additional offering for a later date.
  • Session materials will be available for download at the time of the events.

The NTP website has been redesigned. Even though the website may look different from when you registered, you won’t have to re-register for any of the events.