Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) will host a virtual town hall meeting on the Core Competencies for Interprofessional Collaborative Practice (Core Competencies) on Friday, September 17, from 2:00 to 3:30 pm ET.
ASAHP Awards $25,000 Interprofessional Collaboration Research Grant
ASAHP Conference Moves to Virtual
As a result of the significant increase in COVID infections from the Delta variant in recent weeks, ASAHP’s in person Annual Conference on October 20-21st will be moving to a virtual format. The health and safety of ASAHP’s members must be paramount, particularly for an association whose mission is focused on health education and health care. More details will be provided on our website soon regarding the virtual meeting, which will include the speakers and highlights we planned to bring to you in person.
ASAHP Clinical Education Task Force Seeking Graduate Student Project Coordinator
ASAHP’s Clinical Education Task Force is looking for a project coordinator for our Clinical Education Task Force. The coordinator schedules meetings, takes minutes and participates in the work of the task force. This work can be literature searches, writing, checking references, assisting with presentations, presenting, etc.
The hours are flexible and generally 2 to 4 hours per week. Applicants must be a graduate student at an ASAHP member institution. Students are paid by the hour. The only set time for availability is the second Wednesday of the month from 1 to 2pm ET for computer-based task force meetings.
Thank you for your help. Interested students can apply here.
Assessing America’s Hospitals’ Capacity To Provide Care During COVID-19
The American Hospital Association has released its latest edition of the COVID-19 Snapshot, underscoring the persisting challenges facing hospitals and health systems during the ongoing public health emergency. The Snapshot combines important data points with news articles and testimonials from the field to illustrate the importance of providing hospitals and health systems with additional resources and support so that they can continue to deliver care to patients and families.
The Snapshot can be obtained at https://www.aha.org/the-snapshot.
CDC To Establish New Disease Forecasting Center
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is announcing a new center designed to advance the use of forecasting and outbreak analytics in public health decision making. Once established, the Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics will bring together next-generation public health data, expert disease modelers, public health emergency responders, and high-quality communications, to meet the needs of decision makers.
More information can be obtained at https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/p0818-disease-forecasting-center.html.
The Future Of Nursing 2020 To 2030
The decade ahead will test the nation's nearly four million nurses in new and complex ways. Nurses live and work at the intersection of health, education, and communities. The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity, a book from the National Academy of Medicine, explores how nurses can work to reduce health disparities and promote equity, while keeping costs at bay, utilizing technology, and maintaining patient and family-focused care into 2030.
The book can be obtained at Front Matter | The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity | The National Academies Press (nap.edu).
2020 U.S. Bureau Census Statistics On Population Changes And Diversity
The U.S. Census Bureau today released additional 2020 Census Results, showing an increase in the population of U.S. metro areas compared to a decade ago. Also, these once-a-decade results showed the nation’s diversity in how individuals identify their race and ethnicity.
More information can be obtained at Local Population Changes and Nation’s Racial and Ethnic Diversity (census.gov).
Marketplace Special Enrollment Period Report
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) reports that over 2.5 million Americans have signed up for health insurance as of July 31, 2021, through HealthCare.gov and State-based Marketplaces (SBMs), combined, since the start of the 2021 special enrollment period (SEP) report made available in all Marketplaces. Consumers in states with an SBM made 723,000 plan selections since the start date of each state’s SEP through July 31, 2021.
Additional information can be obtained at 2021 Marketplace Special Enrollment Period Report | CMS.
Department of Education Calls for Nominations to Negotiated Rulemaking Committee
On Friday, the U.S. Department of Education announced that it is establishing a negotiated rulemaking committee that will meet virtually beginning in October to rewrite regulations for Public Service Loan Forgiveness, income-contingent repayment plans, and borrower defense to repayment, among other issues. To submit nominations for committee, subcommittee, or advisor spots, email negregnominations@ed.gov. The Department will accept nominations for 21 days after the notice is published in the Federal Register.
The press release may be accessed here.
Providers’ Guide For Direct-To-Consumer Telehealth
Telehealth.HHS.gov has published a best practice guide for health providers on direct-to-consumer (DTC) telehealth. They can learn about ways to integrate telehealth into their workflow to meet the needs of their patients and practice, from developing a DTC strategy to telehealth billing.
The guide can be obtained at Introduction to direct-to-consumer telehealth | Telehealth.HHS.gov.
ASAHP Urges Congress to Provide Protections for DACA Recipients
Today, ASAHP joined the American Council on Education and numerous other higher education associations in urging Congress to provide permanent legal protections for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients and all Dreamers.
The letter to Congressional leadership may be accessed here.
Federal Role In Health Equity And Disparities During The COVID-19 Pandemic
A new report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) presents (1) several definitions of potential disparity populations in general and emergency management contexts; (2) selected health disparities documented during the pandemic; (3) selected key federal laws and policies that address health equity in general and during the pandemic; and (4) selected issues involving federalism, disparities data, and competing priorities.
The report can be obtained at https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R46861.pdf.
Data On Postsecondary Tuition, Fees, and Degrees Released
The National Center for Health Statistics (NCES) has made available a set of provisional web tables from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) fall 2020 collection, which included three survey components: Institutional Characteristics for the 2020-21 academic year, Completions covering the period July 1, 2019, through June 30, 2020, and data on 12-Month Enrollment for the 2019-20 academic year.
Data can be obtained at Survey Components (ed.gov).
POST GRAD Act Reintroduced in the House
Congressional Hearings on Student Loans and Pell Grants
This afternoon at 3:00pm Eastern, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Subcommittee on Economic Policy, holds a hearing on “Protecting Student Loan Borrowers and the Economy in Upcoming Transitions”. Witnesses include Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers, the Honorable Letitia James, Attorney General of the state of New York, and Persis Yu, Director of the Student Loan Borrower Assistance Project at the National Consumer Law Center. On Thursday at 10:15am Eastern, the House Education and Labor, Higher Education and Workforce Investment Subcommittee, will hold a hearing on “Keeping the Pell Grant Promise: Increasing Enrollment, Supporting Success”. On Tuesday, August 3 at 10am Eastern, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary holds a hearing on “Student Loan Bankruptcy Reform”.
Tuesday’s hearing may be accessed here. Thursday’s hearing may be accessed here. Next Tuesday’s hearing may be accessed here.
Department of Education Issues Request for Information Regarding the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program
On Friday, the U.S. Department of Education issued a request for information regarding the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. The Office of the Under Secretary solicits written comments to identify operational improvements to the PSLF program and to inform determinations about technical improvements, borrower experiences, policy considerations, or other factors that should be considered to improve access to PSLF. Comments must be received on or before September 24, 2021.
The Request For Information (RFI) may be accessed here. A blog post from the Department of Education may be accessed here.
State Of Health Coverage And Affordability In The U.S.
A new issue brief from the Commonwealth Fund reports on survey findings about current uninsured rates, pandemic-related coverage loss, and Americans’ ongoing struggles to pay their medical bills.
The brief can be obtained at https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2021/jul/as-pandemic-eases-what-is-state-coverage-affordability-survey.
ASAHP Endorses the SAVE Act and the Pathways to Health Careers Act
HRSA Funding Opportunity: Health and Public Safety Workforce Resiliency Training Program
HRSA has announced a funding opportunity for its “Health and Public Safety Workforce Resiliency Training Program”. The purpose of this program is to plan, develop, operate or participate in health professions and nursing training activities using evidence-based or evidence-informed strategies, to reduce and address burnout, suicide, mental health conditions and substance use disorders and promote resiliency among health care students, residents, professionals, paraprofessionals, trainees, public safety officers, and employers of such individuals, collectively known as the “Health Workforce,” in rural and underserved communities. Eligible entities include health professions schools. Thirty grants are anticipated, with a total of $68,420,000 in funding for a three year period of performance. There is also one funding opportunity, estimated at $6 million, for the Health and Public Safety Workforce Resiliency Technical Assistance Center (HPSWRTAC) to provide tailored training and technical assistance to HRSA’s health workforce resiliency grant recipients.