During the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government increased funding to hospitals and clinics and incentivized states to pause terminating enrollees from the Medicaid program to help increase access to health care and ease the financial burden caused by the global public health emergency. With the end of the pandemic in sight, we all need to prepare for the unwinding of the public health emergency (PHE). TennCare (our state’s Medicaid agency) has estimated that 300,000 people will lose their Medicaid health insurance after the PHE ends.

Hospitals and clinics are bracing for a significant reduction in funding, particularly in rural areas where providers were struggling even before the pandemic to provide health care to many uninsured people. Join the Rural Health Association of Tennessee and the Tennessee Justice Center to learn how the PHE unwinding will impact access to health care in your community. Click here to register today!

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services proposes new rule that creates a pathway for rural hospitals and critical access hospitals to increase access to emergency and outpatient care.

Click here to read CMS' statement on Expanding Access to Emergency Care Services in Rural Communities
Click here to read the Fact Sheet on Conditions of Participation for Rural Emergency Hospitals and Critical Access Hospital COP Updates (CMS-3419-P)

The TN AHEC Scholars Program seeks to develop, prepare, and sustain a culturally competent healthcare workforce that is prepared to deliver high quality care in a transforming heath care delivery system, with emphasis on training rural and urban underrepresented minority, and educationally disadvantaged students for practice in rural and/or underserved areas.

TN AHEC is currently accepting applications for the 2022-2024 cohort. Click here for informational letter. Click here to view the program brochure.

The following statement is from STLT Policy & Public Health Partnerships in regards to under 5 year old vaccinations:

On Saturday, June 18^th, CDC Director Rochelle P. Walensky, M.D., M.P.H., endorsed the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ (ACIP) recommendation to expand COVID-19 vaccination to children younger than 5 years of age. This decision now universally recommends COVID-19 vaccination for everyone 6 months and older, paving the way for about 20 million children in this age group to get vaccinated and allowing providers to begin vaccinating with either the Moderna or the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine as soon as possible.

The Rural Health Association of Tennessee hosts a webinar titled, "Time Out for Men's Health" on June 02, 2022 from 10am-11am CST. Our guest speaker is Mike Leventhal, Executive Director with the Men's Health Network- Tennessee.

1. Who is Men's Health Network and why is men's health important?
2. "The Silent Crisis" that is men's health.
3. Ways and means for public health professionals to get involved and become part of the men's health movement.

We'd like for you to join us for this virtual event! Register Here

Registration for this event is closed. 

Join us on May 17th from 9:00am-2:00pm ET at Bishop Hall at East Tennessee State University as we partner with ETSU Rural and Community Programs and Coordinated School Health to bring you RHA of TN's East Tennessee Regional Event: "Rural Resilience: Strengthening Restoration through Partnerships and Collaboration."

General Preventive Medicine & Public Health Residency Program

The Public Health and General Preventive Medicine Residency Program (GPM) at Meharry Medical College (MMC) is for individuals who want to pursue a career in Preventive Medicine with a special interest in Maternal and Child Health, with emphasis on the health of underserved and rural communities. Board certification in a Primary care specialty will be enhanced by additional education and experiences in public health and prevention.

GetCovered Tennessee, a healthcare access program of Family and Children’s Service, is a great resource here in Tennessee! They are the state grantee for connecting uninsured Tennesseans with health insurance through TNCARE/CoverKids/Affordable Care Act. FCS is a non-profit offering free healthcare access service in all 95 Tennessee counties, and their services are free of charge. In addition to enrollment, they also provide educational training on TNCARE/Coverkids/Affordable Care Act or Health Assist Safety net programs, such as how to use your insurance coverage and what the insurance terms mean. 

GetCoveredTenn is a non-profit program providing free health insurance enrollment and healthcare advice to all Tennesseans. GetCoveredTenn has a team of 20 experts to help Tennesseans find quality healthcare through affordable insurance, access to community-based healthcare services, or both. Their services are free and unbiased.

The March of Dimes Maternal HealthCARE (Collaborative to Advance Racial Equity) is taking a novel approach to community engagement that generates honest feedback that is of value to hospitals and health systems. This collaborative is seeking additional partnerships with statewide partners to join this collaborative. RHA of TN wants to be sure that the voices of rural Tennesseans are heard. If you or someone that you know would like to be apart of this collaboration, apply here. 

Find out more information at: 

Are you curious about what leadership solutions are available for rural healthcare leaders who are passionate about making a difference? This week on Rural Health Leadership Radio we explore another rural-focused leadership program that’s working to improve health equity, NRHA’s Rural Health Fellows Program. 

NRHA’s Rural Health Fellows program is a yearlong, intensive training program that develops leaders who can articulate a clear and compelling vision for rural America. Each year, NRHA selects 10 to 15 highly motivated individuals who have proven their dedication to improving the health of rural Americans through their educational or professional experience. The goal of the Fellows program is to educate and develop a network of diverse rural leaders that will step forward to serve in key positions in the association, affiliated advocacy groups, and local and state legislative bodies with health equity as the main focus. For more information, go to https://www.ruralhealth.us/programs/rural-health-fellows

Listen on Rural Health Leadership Radio

April is Autism Awareness Month. The RHA of TN would like to share a pre-recorded webinar featuring Lauren Pearcy the Executive Director with the Tennessee Council on Developmental Disabilities in a webinar titled, "Disability Resources for Healthcare Providers and Patients". 

We are continually focused on caring for the well-being of individuals with developmental disabilities. Through advanced research, we will get the help they need by providing resources that will support the health and safety of all the individuals. 

  Click here to view recording 

Engooden Health becomes Rural Health Clinic
Sustaining Member!

Engooden Health, a company redefining chronic disease management, today announced a partnership with the Rural Health Association of Tennessee (RHA of TN), granting members access to technology-enhanced chronic care management (CCM) services between provider visits. Engooden will provide association members with the ability to scale personalized interventions for patients living with chronic diseases to help improve their quality of life and health outcomes.

Health disparities within rural communities occur due to social determinants, including geographic isolation, socioeconomic status, and reliable food sources. These factors place larger populations of people at risk for having chronic diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease. Engooden’s proprietary technology, in partnership with RHA of TN, will help bring more ongoing and equitable care to Tennesseans by providing its members with outsourced services to rising risk patients in between office visits. 

Thanks to the advocacy efforts of RHA of TN members and other organizations, dental coverage is now available for pregnant and postpartum women. Starting April 1st, pregnant women on TennCare will have dental coverage.  

An excerpt of the Notice of Change can be found below.

The please see the following update from the Tennessee Department of Health:

The following information as released from HRSA regarding the Uninsured Program and the Coverage Assistance Fund. Please direct additional concerns to https://www.hrsa.gov/CovidUninsuredClaim or contact the HRSA Provider Support Line at (866) 569-3522. 

RHA of TN hosts, ArchProCoding Virtual Training for RHCs on April 20, 2022: 9am-2pm CST Curriculum specifics include:

•  The “Key Components” associated with E&M code selection
• The differences between the CPT and CMS E&M documentation guidelines
• Discuss the use of utilization benchmarks to target potential risk areas
• Explain the differences between the 1995 and 1997 examination guidelines
• Determining the complexity of medical decision making (MDM)
• The importance to ‘link’ ICD-10-CM codes to E&M services
• Risks associated with certain EHRs solutions (e.g, “wizards”)
• Distinguishing “problem-oriented” from “preventive” E&M services
• What to look for when modifiers are reported with E&M services (e.g., -25)
• How to use a well-constructed audit template to conduct reviews
• Key steps to present audit findings to providers successfully and non-confrontationally

Attendees must be a certified Rural Health Clinic in the state of Tennessee.

Rural Health Association of Tennessee members met with several of Tennessee’s legislators and staffs on Wednesday, March 9^th.

Topics of conversation ranged from discussing the Access to Naloxone Act, telehealth, health equity, and the importance of coordinated school health.

Sabrina Blue is the Founder and CEO of Helping Hands of Middle and West Tennessee (HHT). The mission of HHT is to build stronger communities and help improve health outcomes for West Tennessee families. HHT provides dental, medical, and medical insurance assistance to families earning no more than 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Blue is an Associate Pastor with the Historic First Baptist Church in Jackson, Tennessee. Her mission is to look at the deficit of the resources in rural Tennessee and figure out how to deliver holistic healthcare to the residents of rural West Tennessee.

Listen on Rural Health Leadership Radio 

In honor of Heart Health Month, The Rural Health Association hosted a webinar in collaboration with the American Heart Association- Tennessee this morning, "Building Community Networks to Improve Heart Health in Rural Communities" .

Our guest speakers, Brenda Miller and Kacie Kennedy, offered a vast knowledge on ways you can partner with your local communities to help with heart health in your own neighborhood and recognizing the importance of heart health. 

Rural Health Association of TN's members A Step Ahead Chattanooga has a commitment to removing barriers to contraception through education, outreach, and access to free birth control.

A Step Ahead Chattanooga serves 18 counties across Southeast Tennessee, Northwest Georgia, and Northeast Alabama (Bledsoe, Bradley, Franklin, Grundy, Hamilton, Marion, Meigs, McMinn, Polk, Rhea, Sequatchie, Catoosa, Dade, Murray, Walker, Whitfield, DeKalb, and Jackson counties).