Advocates for Community Health

PRESS RELEASE | Advocates for Community Health led over 550 health care organizations in urging Congress to reauthorize the Community Health Center Fund (CHCF) in an end-of-year funding package, at a minimum of $5.8 billion per year for at least three years. In a letter delivered to Congressional leaders today, national, state, and local organizations representing all 50 U.S. states and territories outlined the critical need for a robust funding increase for the CHCF, which is set to expire on December 31, 2024, to meet the record-breaking patient volumes and unprecedented financial challenges that health centers are facing. The signers of the letter expressed concerns about the insufficient federal funding to address the increasing needs of communities amidst mental health, substance abuse, and maternal health crises, as well as local emergencies like hurricanes, wildfires, and tornadoes. While acknowledging a recent short-term funding increase, the group emphasized the importance of a long-term reauthorization, which has not been enacted since 2019. “Health centers simply can no longer do more with less and cannot operate in legislative cycles of uncertainty,” said ACH Chief Executive Officer Amanda Pears Kelly. “These actions have a severe and long-term impact on our nation’s communities, the hundreds of thousands of employees working in health centers, and the health and wellbeing of the patients they serve.” Read the press release: https://hubs.li/Q02QjQNK0 #CHCs #ValueCHCs #communityhealth #healthcenters #primarycare #healthpolicy #Congress #healthcare #healthequity #FQHC #healthcarefunding #healthfunding #advocacy

"In addition, Stephanie Krenrich, senior vice president of policy and government affairs at Advocates for Community Health (ACH), a group representing large community health centers, said ACH was 'concerned that this model will further erode this program health centers rely on.'" “Any model which requires health centers to pay out of pocket for costly drugs and wait for a pharmaceutical company to adjudicate claims under a shroud of secrecy undermines the premise of the program,” Krenrich told 340B Report. “This ‘credit’ approach is especially harmful to community health centers because it has the potential to impact patient access, the revenue cycle, and in-house and contract pharmacy arrangements. It would also create a massive administrative burden for a program that was meant to create a flexible funding stream for safety-net providers who otherwise couldn’t adequately serve their patients.” Read the article in 340B Report: https://hubs.li/Q02ZCLwf0 #340B #PrimaryCare #Pharmacy #HealthCenters #CommunityHealth #ValueCHCs

"There's so much evidence of the value and the return that health centers bring. The Teaching Health Center program is more recent, but for the National Health Service Corps and the Health Center program specifically, we have decades of evidence of the impact -- clinically and economically,” Advocates for Community Health CEO Amanda Pears Kelly told Inside Health Policy on Wednesday (Nov. 20). “And so not only would it be ill-advised to somehow forget all of that, but the human harm that would come as a result of that is pretty massive.” ACH's statement on the Paragon Health Institute's Policy Brief was covered extensively in an interview with Inside Health Policy which was released today. Additionally, Pears Kelly said, "Ultimately, community health centers, the THCGME, and the NHSC are all programs that have historically garnered bipartisan support--and they should remain that way. That should be the focus -- coming together around them, not creating more division on something that is not in question and shouldn't be." Read the article in Inside Health Policy: https://hubs.li/Q02ZcpHD0 #ValueCHCs #CommunityHealth #HealthCenters #FQHC #THCGME #NHSC #Bipartisan #PrimaryCare #Healthcare #HealthPolicy

Learning collaboratives help organizations apply known improvement principles to current health care practices with the goal of achieving “breakthrough improvements in quality while reducing costs.” Last week, our participants' top concern was protecting the 340B Drug Discount Pricing Program, which provides a critically important revenue stream to community health centers serving more than 32 million patients across the nation. Kelli Pardee, MBA, CPhT, Pharmacy Business Director at Great Lakes Bay Health Centers, commented on her experience, “It was a great opportunity to learn from each other and to brainstorm ways to continue to advocate for the 340B program. “Take a look at the report that ACH did about 340B – it is a great overview of the program and why it is so important to us and our patients.” Read the story: https://hubs.li/Q02Zb4vD0 #340B #LearningCollaborative #FQHC #ValueCHCs #CHCs #CommunityHealth #HealthCenters #HealthPolicy #Advocacy #HealthCare #PrimaryCare #Pharmacy #Pharmacists #PharmacyManagers

With grant funding from ACH's Entrepreneur Challenge, Cherokee Health Systems aims to help close the gap in health disparities among the communities it serves by applying data-driven analytics. “The advanced Health Equity Dashboard will allow users to access outcome data, by site, by provider, and by patient,” said Chief Executive Officer at Cherokee Health Systems Parinda Khatri, Ph.D. “This data will be used by care coordinators and community health workers to guide their outreach efforts, clinic teams to identify individuals requiring further attention, and clinicians to inform care planning,” she added. Learn more: https://hubs.li/Q02Z3mlR0 #FQHC #ValueCHCs #CommunityHealth #CHCs #HealthCenters #DataAnalytics #HealthEquity #PrimaryCare #HealthTechnology

ACH has issued a statement in response to the recently released report from the Paragon Health Institute titled "Health Care for a Lame Duck." ACH urges Congress to reject the Paragon Health Institute’s recent lame duck recommendations as we face a fiscal environment where the health care safety net is teetering on the brink of collapse. Instead, we encourage every member of Congress to listen to their constituents, including health center patients and providers who strive to care for their communities every day, and provide robust funding for the Health Center Program. Read our full statement: https://hubs.li/Q02YYNh30 #ValueCHCs #CommunityHealth #HealthCenters #LameDuck #Congress #HealthPolicy #Healthcare #PrimaryCare #FQHCs

Today, Advocates for Community Health calls on the Biden Administration to include dedicated funding for community health centers in any disaster supplemental request it sends to Congress and for Congress to act on this request swiftly. Read our full statement: https://hubs.li/Q02Ywrwt0

"Between 2009 and 2024 the number of patients served at Amoskeag Health in Manchester, NH nearly tripled from 6,000 to 16,000 and staff numbers have increased from 55 to 225 at five locations. The challenge, says CEO Kris McCracken, is funding. Funding for the federally qualified health center (FQHC) is 'largely either decreasing or stable, but it doesn’t keep up with inflation,' says McCracken. Because of that, Amoskeag Health will likely fall $3 million short in its $22 million operating budget this year." https://hubs.ly/Q02Yh9Dz0 #FQHC #ValueCHCs #CommunityHealth #HealthCenters #PrimaryCare #Healthcare #NewHampshire #Medicaid #Medicare #FundingCrisis

In honor of National American Indian Heritage Month, let’s take a moment to appreciate the incredible work that health centers do for Native American communities across the U.S.! Did you know that nearly 2.6 million Native Americans turn to federally qualified health centers for their healthcare needs? These centers are essential in tackling health disparities and providing services that truly respect and reflect cultural traditions. They don’t just focus on primary care; many also weave in traditional healing practices, creating a holistic approach to wellness. What’s really inspiring is how committed these health centers are to preserving cultural practices. They offer a variety of programs, including mental health support, substance use treatment, and chronic disease management, all tailored to meet the unique needs of Native populations. For more information on how health centers honor Native American traditions and promote wellness, check out: https://hubs.li/Q02Y7pR40 #NationalAmericanIndianHeritageMonth #CommunityHealth #HealthEquity #CulturalHeritage #NAIHM2024

We're kicking off our 340B Learning Collaborative today with 16 ACH members from states representing NY, TX, CA, NC, WA, MA, and MI! This is the third learning collaborative we’ve offered ACH members and the largest by participation so far. We know that protecting 340B is an essential issue for health centers, and we hope that participants walk away equipped with tangible knowledge to enact real change in their communities. Learn more about the critical role of 340B at FQHCs in ACH's Special Report: https://hubs.li/Q02Y4MGD0 A special thank you to Equiscript, LLC for making this Learning Collaborative possible. #FQHC #HealthCenters #340B #CommunityHealth #Healthcare #PrimaryCare #HealthEquity #Pharmacy #Pharmacists #PharmacyManagers