MNACHC Awarded Department of Labor & Industry Grant for Apprenticeship program
We are so thankful to the Minnesota Department of Labor & Industry for awarding MNACHC a LEAP grant to support our MNACHC Apprenticeship program and specifically “facilitate the participation and retention of people of color, Indigenous people and women in registered apprenticeship”… programs.
NATIONAL HEALTH CENTER WEEK is August 4-10, 2024
Every August, the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) sponsors National Health Center Week (NHCW) to celebrate and increase awareness of America’s 1,400 Community Health Centers (CHCs). National Health Center Week is an opportunity to highlight the commitment and passion of Community Health Center staff, board members, and supporters who make it possible to provide quality, comprehensive healthcare services to more than 31.5 million patients across 14,000 communities annually.
2024 Theme: Powering Communities Through Caring Connections
Scenic Rivers seeks support from communities
REGIONAL- “We love what we do and the people we serve and want to continue to create a solid foundation for Scenic Rivers Health Services to build off for generations to come,” said Kara Jean Baker, an administrative assistant at Scenic Rivers. Baker, who works out of the clinics in Cook and Bigfork, has spearheaded a campaign with the aim to grow the clinic’s financial base, allowing them to hire more staff and even expand into other underserved communities. The aim is to raise as much as $100,000.
Health centers “are a key health care access point for people returning to their communities following incarceration.”
MNACHC CEO REPORT - A Commonwealth Fund report finds that health centers “are a key health care access point for people returning to their communities following incarceration.”
The report notes that health centers' unique features make them potentially strong partners in implementing Medcaid’s new reentry policies.
Announced last year, the new Medicaid Reentry Section 1115 Demonstration Opportunity would allow state Medicaid programs to cover services that address various health concerns, including substance use disorders and other chronic health conditions. While these policy changes represent progress, the report states that “fully realizing the aims of the new Medicaid policies will require a care delivery system capable of operationalizing these reforms.”
Rate of Congenital Syphilis in American Indians at an Alarming Level
MNACHC CEO REPORT - The CDC published data citing that the number of babies born with syphilis in the United States is increasing at an alarming rate. There were more than 3,700 babies born with syphilis in 2022, over 10 times the number reported in 2012.
Syphilis during pregnancy can lead to stillbirth, miscarriage, infant death, and maternal and infant morbidity, which are preventable through appropriate screening and treatment.
No demographic has been hit harder than Native Americans. The CDC data released in January shows that the rate of congenital syphilis among American Indians and Alaska Natives was triple the rate for African Americans and nearly 12 times the rate for white babies in 2022.
Well Child Visits
MNACHC CEO Report - A recent Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) analysis shows that half of children under age 19 received a Medicaid or CHIP-funded well-child visit in 2020. While the pandemic had a substantial impact on health and healthcare service utilization, research has shown that many Medicaid-covered children were not receiving recommended screenings and services even before the pandemic.
The analysis also cited that a larger share of enrollees under age 3 received a well-child visit paid for by Medicaid or CHIP in the year compared with enrollees in older age groups. Well-child visit utilization was highest among enrollees under 1 year of age. Well-child visit rates are lower for Medicaid/CHIP children in rural areas, but rates in urban areas declined more during the pandemic.
Sawtooth Mountain Clinic welcomes new behavioral health consultant and plans to upgrade electronic health record system
On Apr. 1, the Sawtooth Mountain Clinic will add a new behavioral health consultant to the team. She said mental health services were lost in Cook County during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the need for them has been increasing, creating a gap. Surbaugh said the clinic hopes hiring a new behavioral health consultant will help close that gap.
Open Door to open school clinic
MANKATO, Minn. (KEYC) - Last week, the Fairmont school board approved a partnership between the school district and Open Door Health Center in Mankato. The partnership will open a clinic within the school district, solely for the care of students.
Open Door backs workforce development legislation
Bipartisan legislation proposed by congresswoman Angie Criaig will help our MN Community Health Centers like Open Door Health Center in Southern Minnesota grow their own workforces.
“Rhonda Eastlund, CEO of Open Door Health Center in Mankato, sees the proposal as a critical solution to workforce challenges in safety-net clinics. “Having that path to grow would be vital for our career pathways,” she said. Open Door and other federally qualified health centers, or FQHCs, in Minnesota began an apprenticeship program in recent years in which people receive on-the-job training to become medical or dental assistants. The idea was to offer an alternative path into the field than going through a community college. “It’s harder and harder to find people who are able to go to community college for two years to become an allied health professional because they can’t all do college full time and not work,” Eastlund said.”