Rural Health Care Leadership Conference News Coverage

35th Annual AHA Rural Health Care Leadership Conference. February 6-9, 2022. Arizona Grand Resort and Spa.

The American Hospital Association’s 2022 Rural Health Care Leadership Conference, February 6-9, Phoenix, AZ, brings together top practitioners and thinkers to share strategies and resources for accelerating the shift to a more integrated and sustainable rural health system. We’ll examine the most significant operational, financial and environmental challenges including the post-pandemic impact on rural hospitals and their communities, and present innovative approaches that will enable you to transform your organization’s care delivery model and business practices.

Couldn’t attend AHA’s 2022 Rural Health Care Leadership Conference? No problem. Follow along here for updates, and follow along on social media using hashtag #AHARuralHealth for more.

 

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The Federal Communications Commission released a final rule summarizing guidance adopted last month for participants in its $100 million Connected Care Pilot Program, including eligible services, competitive bidding, invoicing and data reporting.
by Rick Pollack
In Bellingham, Wash., the PeaceHealth clinic is using community health workers, or promotoras, to help educate farmworkers in rural communities about the importance of getting the COVID-19 vaccine. 
The Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Health Care Program will carry forward up to $379.97 million in unused funds from prior years to increase available funding for funding year 2021 and beyond if needed, the agency announced.
A coalition of 13 health care organizations, including the AHA, voiced support for the Accountable Care in Rural America Act, bipartisan legislation that would revise the benchmarking formula for the Medicare Shared Savings Program to ensure participating accountable care organizations have an equal opportunity to share in savings regardless of their geographic location.
The Health Resources and Services Administration awarded $100,000 each to more than 4,200 rural health clinics to maintain and increase COVID-19 testing; expand access to testing for rural residents; and broaden efforts to mitigate COVID-19’s spread in ways tailored to their local communities.
The AHA tomorrow, June 3, at 1 p.m. ET will host a webinar featuring Michael Fallahkhair, senior advisor for Federal Office of Rural Health Policy at the Department of Health and Human Services, who will discuss federal funding opportunities to assist rural hospitals and rural health clinics with efforts related to COVID-19 testing, mitigation and vaccination.
The Health Resources and Services Administration this week announced details on its notice of funding opportunity for its Rural Health Clinic Vaccine Confidence Program.
The AHA June 3 at 1 p.m. ET will host a webinar featuring Michael Fallahkhair, senior advisor for Federal Office of Rural Health Policy at the Department of Health and Human Services, who will discuss federal funding opportunities to assist rural hospitals and rural health clinics with efforts related to COVID-19 testing, mitigation and vaccination.
In this podcast marking Mental Health Awareness Month, Shane McGuire, CEO of Columbia County Health System in Dayton, Wash., discusses the hospital district’s collaborative work with the University of Washington’s psychiatry program and its Advancing Integrated Mental Health Center, which focuses on creating care models between primary care providers and their mental health care counterparts.
In this first of two AHA podcasts on rebuilding maternity services at critical access hospitals, officials from the UNC School of Medicine at Chapel Hill and Chatham Hospital UNC Health Care at Siler City, N.C., discuss the strategic need and clinical case for maternity services at their small, rural community.
Health care and other organizations can apply through June 4 for up to $1 million a year for four years to test a network approach to improving maternal health access and outcomes in rural regions.
AHA’s Future of Rural Health Care Task Force has released a report with recommendations for long-range solutions for improving rural health and health care in America.
COVID-19 vaccination coverage was about 7 percentage points lower in rural counties than in urban counties as of April 10, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported today.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Health Resources and Services Administration should disaggregate and analyze maternal health data for rural and underserved communities, and adjust maternal health program efforts to meet the needs in those communities, the Government Accountability Office said in a report.
As a rural provider, Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Avera Behavioral Health sees a high rate of suicide and drug overdoses. To help manage these cases, Avera created a full suite of behavioral health care services, including a comprehensive eCARE telehealth solution delivering services in 32 states.
The Health Resources and Services Administration will provide nearly $1 billion to small rural hospitals, critical access hospitals and rural health clinics to expand COVID-19 testing and help mitigate the virus in their communities, the Department of Health and Human Services announced.
Health leaders from across the U.S. convened to discuss the unique challenges facing rural communities and providers in addressing COVID-19 vaccine administration, confidence and barriers to access. Read the AHA blog that has insights from last night’s rural COVID-19 town hall hosted by AHA and the Black Coalition Against COVID.
The AHA and Black Coalition against COVID April 21 at 7 p.m. ET will host a town hall on enhancing the opportunities for rural health care providers, public health organizations and rural health advocates as they advance COVID-19 prevention guidance, vaccine acceptance and vaccine administration. 
In this case study, AHA’s Future of Rural Health Care Task Force explores how rural hospitals can establish themselves as conveners in their communities, working alongside other stakeholders to improve health outcomes.