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Your CHCANYS 2-16-12

News from Policy
If you have questions about CHCANYS' policy and advocacy work, please contact Beverly Grossman, bgrossman@chcanys.org.

Advocacy Day 2012 is Less than a Month Away! Register Now!
A strong showing of numbers is essential to the success of Community Health Center Grassroots Advocacy Day. This one event on a single day is our opportunity to demonstrate to policymakers in Albany our shared passion for and commitment to community, homeless and migrant health centers. With less than one month left until Advocacy Day, now is the time to finalize your plans.  Please plan to join us in Albany on March 5th.  All attendees must be registered in order to receive a lunch voucher. If you have not already registered, please do so as soon as possible by clicking here.

Don’t Forget the Grassroots Action Network Enrollment Contest!
As a reminder, the organization that signs up the largest number of new Health Center Advocates between now and February 20, 2012 will win one free registration to CHCANYS' 2012 Annual Conference and Clinical Forum, to be held October 24-26 in Saratoga Springs. The winner will be announced during the Advocacy Day morning program on March 5th.

Please do your part and encourage your colleagues, board members, patients and members of your community to join the Grassroots Action Network today. It takes just two minutes to enroll - click here to get started.

Help NACHC Deliver One Million Petitions to Washington, D.C. in March
The national petition and letter drive is still underway! New York State's health center advocates have led the nationwide effort to gather signatures, and it is essential that we continue to build on our momentum. Budgetary struggles at the national level and an uncertain political climate pose considerable challenges to the health center effort to strengthen and expand the primary care infrastructure in the U.S. We need to help NACHC reach their goal of delivering one million signatures to Congress during the upcoming Policy & Issues Forum on March 21-25 and send a clear message to our Representatives about the importance of supporting the Health Centers program.

Click to access petition  and patient letter templates. We also encourage you to check out the Petition Advocacy Guide compiled by the Campaign For America's Health Centers for tips on how to make your petition/letter drive as successful as possible.

Please send copies of your petitions and patient letters to NACHC by e-mail to grassroots@nachc.com with a copy to bgrossman@chcanys.org.

NACHC Policy and Issues (P&I) Forum Hill Visits
It is time to begin planning for P&I Hill visits.  This year’s visits to the Hill will take place on Thursday, March 22nd. The State Delegation meeting is scheduled for the evening of March 21st. Based on positive feedback from last year's attendees, CHCANYS is offering to once again make all Congressional appointments unless you indicate otherwise. Each Congressional appointment will be open to all FQHCs attending from that district. Appointments with the offices of Senators Schumer and Gillibrand will be made by CHCANYS and will be open to New York State FQHC attendees. If you have not already done so, please contact Kate Graetzer, kgraetzer@chcanys.org to let us know whether you’ll be attending and with whom you are planning to meet.

News from Health Center Support
If you have questions about CHCANYS' health center support, please contact Rebecca Gaige, rgaige@chcanys.org

Release of New Search Engine on BPHC TA Website
The Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC) has released a new search engine on the BPHC TA website.  BPHC has enhanced its online resource library with database functions for easier, more accurate searches. The new database system will enable free searches, dropdown menus, key word/topic/phrase searches, and easier upload of new resources.  In addition, this new website enhancement makes it easier to explore hundreds of valuable tools, topical guides, and resources that have been organized and linked to relevant federal sites, BPHC National Cooperative Agreement materials, and many other tools that health center grantees may find useful. To check out this new feature, please click here to visit the BPHC technical assistance website.

2012 NHSC Loan Repayment Application Now Open!
The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Loan Repayment Program (LRP) recently opened its 2012 application cycle!  The application cycle will be open until May 2012; however, providers are strongly encouraged to apply early. Award amounts for this year’s program have been modified to help ensure that communities with the greatest need – those with the highest Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) scores – receive recruitment support to fill much needed clinical positions. We encourage you to check the NHSC website for additional details and make sure that you are maximizing your opportunity for assistance from NHSC with the recruitment and retention of clinicians.

National Government Services Webinar - FQHCs and the Credit Balance Report Process
Designed for FQHC personnel who are looking for information on the correct way to submit credits and complete the credit balance report to National Government Services, this session will give providers important information on the credit balance process under the Medicare program.  It will also introduce or reintroduce the ability to submit your credit(s) through the Direct Data Entry (DDE) system.

Identical session to be held on the following dates:

• Monday, February 27, 2012, 1:00-2:30 p.m. ET
• Wednesday, March 28, 2012, 1:00-2:30 p.m. ET

Registration for this session is required. Visit the National Government Services website for additional information.  Select the 'Go to Home Page' link for your business type and location, then  click on the Training Events Calendar option under the Education and Training header (on the left-hand side of the page). Your registration is considered complete only when you receive an e-mail confirmation.

New Federal Rules Require Medicaid Enrollment Revalidation for All Providers
New federal rules and regulations require that all providers enrolled in Medicaid revalidate their enrollment at least every five years.  Revalidation will include attestation of credentials as well as the agreement to abide by the rules and regulations of the Medicaid program.  Certain provider types will be required to pay a fee for revalidation. A revalidation process will be initiated by the Department of Health in the fall of 2012 and will be rolled out by provider type. Correspondence will be sent to providers, advising them of their need to revalidate their enrollment. Providers will then have 150 days from receipt of the notice to complete the process. Failure to comply with the revalidation and attestation requirements within the specified timeframe will result in provider disenrollment.

In the coming months, additional information regarding the revalidation schedule and instructions will be posted on www.eMedNY.org. Please contact the eMedNY Call Center at (800) 343-9000 with any questions.

To read the entire Medicaid Update, click here. To sign up to receive future updates, please visit www.health.ny.gov.

CHCANYS 2012 Statewide Conference & Clinical Forum: Hold the Dates!
CHCANYS' Statewide Conference & Clinical Forum will be held at The Saratoga Hilton Hotel & Saratoga Springs City Center on October 24-26, 2012.  Please hold the dates! More information to follow.

News from Clinical Quality Improvement
If you have questions about CHCANYS’ Clinical Quality Improvement initiatives, please contact Kathy Alexis, kalexis@chcanys.org. 

Hepatitis A B C Newsletter
The NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Office of Viral Hepatitis Coordination has released its monthly newsletter.  Click here to view the February 2012 issue.

New York State Medicaid Update for January 2012 Released
The Office of Health Insurance Programs of the New York State Department of Health has approved the release of the January 2012 Medicaid Update.  Click here to download the current edition.

The National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare Accepts CHCANYS’ Proposal on Behavioral Health
The National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare has accepted CHCANYS’ proposal to present a poster at the National Council’s Mental Health and Addictions 42nd Annual Conference, scheduled to take place in Chicago on April 15-17, 2012. The abstract, entitled “Best practices and lessons learned in using evidence based collaborative models to treat depression in patients over 60,” focuses on lessons learned along with processes and tools used to implement IMPACT (Improving Mood Promoting Access to Collaborative Treatment). The intent is to highlight the pros and cons of using a Learning Collaborative model to implement an evidence-based model of care in four different community-based settings.

The National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare is the unifying voice of America’s behavioral health organization. It advocates for public policies in mental and behavioral health and provides state-of-the-science education and practice improvement resources.

The NYS Diabetes Campaign
The National Committee for Quality Assurance and Bridges to Excellence (BTE) Diabetes Recognition Programs (DRP) are voluntary programs that enable practices to receive recognition for delivering quality diabetes care. Recognized health centers enjoy the benefit of being distinguished leaders in the community of practice and are able to leverage NCQA DRP data abstraction efforts for incentives, such as those received through the Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) Recognition program.  CHCANYS staff is available to provide technical assistance to those wishing to apply for these recognition programs and to explore opportunities to improve clinical care outcomes.

For more information regarding the Campaign and for tools and resources available, visit the Half the Care website.  To begin your application for Diabetes Recognition, contact Kathy Alexis at kalexis@chcanys.org.

Proposed Demonstration Project – Improving Chlamydia Screening in NYC CHCs
Chlamydia (Ct) is one of the most frequently occurring sexually transmitted diseases in the United States, resulting in over 2.8 million new cases each year. In 2010, there were over 63,000 new cases of chlamydia reported in NYC, with young women under 25 years of age comprising about 70% of all cases.  Untreated Ct is an important cause of infertility.  Because Ct is often asymptomatic, screening is critical to infertility prevention. Ct infection also facilitates the transmission and aquisition of HIV.  For CHCs participating in the CMS Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Programs, Chlamydia screening for women is one of the optional clinical quality measures for payment year 2012.

The Bureau of Sexually Transmitted Disease Control (BSTDC) in the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene proposes to work on a demonstration project with up to 5 community health centers that are members of CHCANYS and are located in high Chlamydia morbidity zip codes to maximize chlamydia screening among sexually active women aged 15-24.  BSTDC will work together with the selected community health centers to demonstrate best practices related to sexual history taking, screening young women for Ct, providing appropriate treatment and rescreening three months after treatment.

Based on 2009 and 2010 surveillance data, the following neighborhoods have the highest rates of Ct in New York City.  BSTDC would prefer to work with community health centers/FQHCs that are located within or serve populations predominantly from these neighborhoods for the purposes of this demonstration project.

Brooklyn

• East New York (11207)
• BedStuy-Crown Heights (11216)

Bronx

• Crotona-Tremont (10453)
• Highbridge-Morrisania (10456, 10457)

Manhattan

• Central Harlem (10039, 10026)
• East Harlem (10035, 10029)

There is the possibility of a small monetary incentive for participating sites.  For more information, contact Kate Washburn, MPH at (347) 396-7297 or kwashbur@health.nyc.gov.

FQHCs & Look-Alikes: Learn How to Treat HIV Patients
PCDC is partnering with HealthHIV, the AIDS Education and Training Center's (AETC) National Center for HIV Care in Minority Communities (NCHCMC) located in Washington, D.C., to provide technical assistance, training and support related to providing clinical services for patients diagnosed with HIV.  Click here for more information.

AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation's Connections for Cardiovascular Health Accepting Grant Applications

Posted on January 16, 2012
Deadline: March 15, 2012

The AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation is accepting applications for the 2012 Connections for Cardiovascular Health program. Launched in 2010 with a $25 million charitable contribution from biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, the program seeks to improve cardiovascular health within the United States and its territories. In 2011, the program awarded more than $3.6 million in grants to over twenty organizations working to improve cardiovascular health in their communities.

To qualify for a grant, applicants must be a U.S.-based nonprofit 501(c)(3) or similar organization and be engaged in charitable work in the United States or its territories that addresses the program's mission of improving cardiovascular health. Programs selected for funding will be working to address an unmet need related to cardiovascular health in a community, respond to the urgency around addressing cardiovascular health issues (including cardiovascular disease or conditions contributing to cardiovascular disease), and improve patients' lives through the services provided.  

Grants of $150,000 and up will be provided annually to innovative initiatives that are focused on clearly defined and measurable results and processes. The recipient organization must be able to demonstrate ongoing activity to improve cardiovascular health and the ability to sustain the initiative after the grant funds are spent.

Visit the AstraZeneca website for complete program guidelines and the online application form.

CME Credits Now Available from CHCANYS October Conference 
This Live Activity, CHCANYS' Statewide Conference & Clinical Forum 2011, with a beginning date of 10/16/2011 – 10/18/2011, has been reviewed and is acceptable for up to 13.50 Prescribed credit(s) by the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. AAFP Prescribed credit is accepted by the American Medical Association as equivalent to AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ toward the AMA Physician’s Recognition Award.  When applying for the AMA PRA, Prescribed credit earned must be reported as Prescribed, not as Category 1. AAFP members may report credits online at the AAFP website. Non-members of AAFP may contact rwynn@chcanys.org to receive a certificate of participation. However, clinicians are responsible for filing with their respective organizations to receive credits.

CMEs on Practice Registries for Health Care Professionals Available
The Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University (Einstein) and the New York Diabetes Coalition (NYDC) are pleased to announce the launch of a free continuing medical education (CME) activity for health care professionals titled “Bringing Guidelines to Life Using a Diabetes Registry,” available on the NYDC website.  The CME activity was planned and produced in accordance with the Essential Areas and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through joint sponsorship by Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the NYDC. This CME program employs video simulations by expert faculty to focus on the use and value of patient registries in optimizing care for patients with diabetes. It will be offered for one year.

This continuing education activity was funded by an unrestricted educational grant from the New York State Department of Health and can be found at www.nydc.org. Click here to see the press release announcing the launch of the CME activity.

2012 Prevent Blindness America Investigator Award: Deadline March 30, 2012 
The 2012 Prevent Blindness America Investigator Award provides funding for research related to eye health and safety. Applications will be accepted in the following priority areas in adult vision, children’s vision, or eye injury:

• burden/economic aspects of eye disease/vision loss on society;
• best practices to integrate vision screening/follow up care to system care access; and
• vision program effectiveness/evaluation.

All research grants need to promote the core mission of Prevent Blindness America – preventing blindness and preserving sight. Basic laboratory science research will not be supported under this program. The deadline for the ninth annual Prevent Blindness America Investigator Award is March 30, 2012. One-year grants up to $30,000 are reviewed by ARVO and will commence on July 1, 2012.

For more information, visit: http://www.preventblindness.org/investigator-awards. Contact Nita Patel, PBA Director of Public Health at 312-363-6019 or patel@preventblindness.org with any questions.

Physical Activity and Sport for People with Disabilities Symposium proceedings
In June, the Inclusive Fitness Coalition and the University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities at Georgetown University hosted the Physical Activity and Sport for People with Disabilities Symposium and Strategic Planning Meeting. The proceedings from the meeting have recently been published and contain targeted ideas on promoting awareness of the importance of this issue, advocating for physical activity across the spectrum of disabilities, developing policies that are responsive to the needs of people with disabilities, and creating resources that are helpful for program development. 

The proceedings can be found on the Inclusive Fitness Coalition website.

Conferences and Training

2nd World Conference of Women's Shelters
Date and Location: February 27 - March 1, 2012 in Washington, DC.
For more information, call (202)543-5566 or visit the website.

ATS 2012 International Conference
Dates & Location: May 18 - 23, 2012 in San Francisco, CA.
For more information contact ATS by e-mail at conference@thoracic.org or by phone at (212) 315-8652, or visit the website.

SYNChronicity: Connecting to Change: HealthHIV's Annual National Meeting
Dates & Location: April 20 - 21, 2012 in Washington, DC.
For more information, e-mail synchronicity@healthhiv.org, call (202) 232-6749, or visit the website.

24th Annual National Conference on Social Work and HIV/AIDS
Dates & Location: May 24 - 27, 2012 in Miami, FL.
For more information, contact Dr. Vincent Lynch, Conference Chair at vincent.lynch.1@bc.edu or by phone at (617) 552-4038, visit the website.

HIV Management 2012: The New York Course
Dates & Location: May 10 - 11, 2012 in Manhattan, NY.
For more information, e-mail info@newyorkcourse.com, call (888) 391-3996, visit the website. 

Project ECHO (Extending Community Health Outcomes)
Date & Location:  aideoconference available nationwide on March 27, 2012.
For more information, call (866) 352-2382; or visit the website.

HIV and The Aging Population
Date & Location: a webcast available nationwide on April 04, 2012. 
For more information, instructions, and guidelines, contact Jim Ybarra at ybarraj@mail.amc.edu or by phone at (518) 262-4674, visit the website. 

TB Intensive Workshop
Dates & Location: May 1-4, 2012 in Newark, NJ.
For more information contact Anita Khilall at khilalan@umdnj.edu or visit the website.

Free Webinar on Diabetes and Visual Impairment
The Carroll Center for the Blind has announced a third course in their series of online courses for patients, families and professionals.  The Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) approves 30.50 contact hours for this self-study. With the support of Diabetes Educators Educating Massachusetts (DEEM), the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE), an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s COA and the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education as a provider of continuing pharmacy education, this course provides 23.5 contact hours of continuing education credit. Many other health professions accept the Carroll’s Center’s certificate for continuing education credit.

For more information, please click here to read the FAQ.

To register for the webinar, follow the appropriate link below:

A New View for Patients and Families

A New View for Vision Professionals

A New View for Health Professionals

Medicaid Family Planning Benefit Program
Planned Parenthood of New York City, in collaboration with the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH), is once again offering free training workshops and technical assistance on the Medicaid Family Planning Benefit Program (FPBP) and other public health insurance programs that cover reproductive health care and family planning services. 

These trainings can cover eligibility, enrollment, and benefits and also address related issues like confidentiality, access by minors and immigrants to public health insurance, and managed care.  Through these efforts, we hope to increase access to family planning and reproductive health care and improve the health outcomes for women, men and adolescents.

Please call or e-mail Carmina Bernardo, MPH at (212) 274-7277 or carmina.bernardo@ppnyc.org to arrange a training workshop for you and your colleagues.

News from Emergency Preparedness
If you have questions about CHCANYS' EP work, please contact Matthew Ziemer, mziemer@chcanys.org.

New York State Interoperable Communications Drill
On October 27, 2011, the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) conducted Phase One of the two-phase Interoperable Communications Exercise (IOC)that included New York State community health centers. The IOC exercise utilized the NYSDOH Integrated Health Alert & Notification System (IHANS).  During the exercise, 25 health centers were phoned and sent an e-mail requesting a response. The results from this exercise were recently published published.  Of the 25 health centers contacted, 24 were able to respond to either the e-mail message or the phone message - a 96% response rate.  Please click here to view the full report.

The results indicate that health centers are maintaining their contact information in the IHANS system and that they are able to be contacted to assist in an overall response. The second phase of this exercise, which will require health centers to perform more complex tasks, will be executed in the spring.  Health centers may be required to confirm their participation in the spring exercise by interfacing with the IHANS and following a set of instructions that will be sent by the NYSDOH.

The Emergency Management Plan Template
Last year, through the generous support of the New York State Department of Health’s Office of Health Emergency Preparedness, the CHCANYS EP team updated the existing Community Health Center Emergency Preparedness Template.  We are proud to introduce the new and improved template, which is posted on the CHCANYS website for your use. The template was designed with flexibility in mind, and great efforts were made to make it as modular as possible. You may now pick and choose which tools your health center needs most. To access this document, please click here. 

The template can also be accessed via the CHCANYS website: Preparedness - Resources - Resources for Health Centers. If you have any questions, please feel free to call CHCANYS' emergency management professionals at (212) 710-3810.

News from HIT
If you have questions about CHCANYS' HIT work, please contact Lisa Perry, lperry@chcanys.org.

NY State Medicaid Meaningful Use Registration & Attestation – Good News! 
The deadline for registration & attestation for NY State 2011 Medicaid Meaningful Use Incentives has been extended to April 29, 2012.

From the eMedNY ListServ:
The NYS Department of Health (DOH) has obtained CMS approval to extend the deadline for Eligible Professionals (EPs) to attest for Payment Year 2011 in the NY Medicaid EHR Incentive Program. EPs now have until April 29, 2012 to submit attestations for activities conducted in calendar year 2011 (using patient volume data from calendar year 2010 to determine eligibility). The DOH is working with stakeholder organizations and the State’s two Regional Extension Centers (RECs) to provide additional assistance to providers in determining their Medicaid patient volume, and this extension will provide time for these activities to be completed prior to the attestation deadline. For more information on how to apply, click here. 

DOH will conduct a webinar on February 22nd from 12 - 1 PM on MEIPASS Prerequisites, the steps that need to be taken before an EP can register and attest in the NYS Medicaid Meaningful Use Registration & Attestation system (MEIPASS). You may click here to register for the webinar.