Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers

We have good news! The early-bird deadline for getting a deep discount on a three-day pass to the 2025 Community Health Institute (CHI) has been extended to Friday, March 14. The regular rate for a one-day registration is $700. With the early-bird discount, you get three days of CHI access for $990. There are plenty of great reasons for you to register by March 14. In the following short video, the Mass League’s Gia Angluin provides details about CHI sessions that have already been scheduled, including a program on Monday designed for board chairs and CEOs, a Tuesday session about building a sustainable philanthropy program at your health center, a panel discussion and Q&A on Wednesday featuring state legislators, and a Thursday session focused on how to leverage the 340B Drug Pricing Program to maximize your health center’s profits. Stay tuned for more agenda updates. Visit https://lnkd.in/enK7dEZX to?register, get a?preliminary agenda,?reserve a hotel room, and obtain other important conference information. Please note that you will need login credentials to access our member portal (my.massleague.org). If you don’t have login credentials, please email [email protected] to get added to the system. ? #2025CHI #CommunityHealthInstitute

Please join us for this important conversation featuring our own Michael Curry, The Dimock Center CEO Dr. Charles Anderson and our good friend Dr. Thea James of Boston Medical Center.

We lost a deeply passionate, deeply respected social justice advocate this week. Psychiatrist Alvin Francis Poussaint died peacefully at his home on February 24 at age 90. Poussaint worked at Harvard Medical School (HMS) for over 50 years, spending much of his career as a professor and associate dean. He was an authority on race relations and various other social issues. Poussaint strove to improve the public’s understanding of Black children and families, mental health and suicide, school violence, and substance abuse. He also worked tirelessly to increase diversity in medicine. As the founding director of the HMS Office of Recruitment & Multicultural Affairs, Poussaint recruited and mentored nearly 1,400 students of color and developed programs to help students from underrepresented groups attain professional success in medicine. “His passing sharpens our awareness of the continued need to reduce health disparities by bringing more members of underserved populations into the medical field,” said George Q. Daley, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Harvard University.?“May we honor his memory through our unwavering commitment to justice, equality, and health and well-being for all.” Visit https://lnkd.in/eiAnvbkp to read more about Poussaint’s impactful life. #socialjustice

We're excited to announce that Kate Walsh, Massachusetts Secretary of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, has accepted our invitation to speak at the 2025 Community Health Institute (CHI)! Come to this year's CHI to get Secretary Walsh's insight about the future of primary care in our state. If you haven't registered as a 2025 CHI attendee yet, please note that the early-bird discount expires Wednesday, March 5. With the early-bird discount, you get three days of CHI access for $990. The regular rate for a one-day registration is $700. Visit https://lnkd.in/enK7dEZX to?register, learn more about discounts, get a?preliminary agenda,?reserve a hotel room, and obtain other important conference information. Please note that you will need login credentials to access our member portal (my.massleague.org). If you don’t have login credentials, please email [email protected] to get added to the system. #2025CHI #CommunityHealthInstitute #PrimaryCareFuture

Save the date! Last year was filled with the drama of a box office blockbuster, with funding cliffs, hospital closures, and pivotal changes. On?Friday, June 13, 2025, we will honor the heroes of that thriller — our all-star cast of health center leaders and staff.? We will celebrate Mass League and health center accomplishments at our annual awards gala, themed “Camera Ready,” from 6 to 11 p.m. at the Westin Copley Plaza, Boston.? Visit https://lnkd.in/eR6kK6UW to get more details about the event. Stay tuned for sponsorship and ticket information. #annualawardsgala #healthcenterrecognition

IHE Executive Director and Senior Vice President Dr. Cheryl Clark was honored at the Boston Business Journal's second annual Innovators in Healthcare awards ceremony! Dr. Clark was awarded in the community health category, recognized for her championship of health equity and community health center-led science, a model that empowers CHCs to drive data analysis, scientific discovery, clinical and policy innovation. IHE will continue to support CHCs as uniquely responsive care providers, champions of CHC-led science, and central pillars in the state’s health system. Dr. Clark is proud to be awarded alongside the health leaders driving innovation and equity, including CHC leader Mimi Gardner, VP & Chief Equity Officer at NeighborHealth. Read more about the awards here: https://lnkd.in/eQXUMqNH #BBJHealthcare

In an op-ed piece set to be published in the February 23 print edition of the Boston Sunday Globe’s Globe Magazine, Mass League CEO and President Michael Curry, Esq., shares the importance of community health centers — to everyone — and warns us about what our world would look like without them. He asserts that concern about such a scenario is legitimate considering health centers’ recent financial struggles and federal policy moves aimed at cutting health care resources. “Our health centers provide lifesaving preventive screenings and vaccinations, and support for managing chronic conditions?—?they’re part of the first line of defense against complex medical issues,” says Curry. “Importantly, because health centers are integrated into our communities, they are able to build trust and connection among patients who are worried about cost, language barriers, cultural differences, and juggling time spent receiving care with inflexible jobs and family demands.” Curry stresses that health centers not only directly provide lifesaving and life-sustaining care but also indirectly help reduce health care costs for everyone and temper the demand for emergency care. Without accessible primary care, he suggests, patients are more likely to develop chronic conditions that lead to costly hospitalizations and ER visits — costs that are passed on to everyone. He also notes that people without readily available primary care are more likely to go to an emergency room for non-emergency issues that should be handled in a doctor’s office visit. “When the ER is the only option, the cascade of negative effects is undeniable: Continuity of care is lost for patients, longer wait times risk the lives of those most in need of emergency treatment, and care is delivered not in a doctor’s office, but in the most expensive health care setting possible,” Curry explains. “The question is not whether we can afford to fund community health centers and maintain expanded Medicaid coverage, but whether we can afford not to.” If you can’t wait until Sunday to get the print version of Curry’s editorial, the online version is available at https://lnkd.in/eYEJ34e5. *Please note that a paywall is associated with accessing the online version. #healthcarefunding #healthcarecosts #healthcaredemand #communityhealthcenters

The early-bird discount is expiring soon! Register for the 2025 Community Health Institute (CHI) today! With the early-bird discount, which expires on March 5, you get three days of CHI access for $990. The regular rate for a one-day registration is $700. Visit https://lnkd.in/enK7dEZX to?register, learn more about discounts, get a?preliminary agenda,?reserve a hotel room, and obtain other important conference information. Please note that you will need login credentials to access our member portal (my.massleague.org). If you don’t have login credentials, please email [email protected] to get added to the system. #2025CHI #CommunityHealthInstitute

In her State of the Commonwealth message last month, Governor Maura Healey noted that Massachusetts is ranked as the best state in the country for health care. But she also conceded that health care in our state is far from perfect, particularly when it comes to access and costs. She stated that a key component of improving the health of our health care system is to bolster our primary care workforce. “I am directing my administration to shift health care resources to the front lines,” said Healey. “And by that, I mean primary care. We’ll drive career training pipelines to grow the workforce. I want a whole army of primary care providers out there, so when you call for an appointment, you’ll get one. You’ll get the affordable care you need, where and when you need it.” The dire need to increase the number of primary care providers is reflected in recent findings released by the state’s Health Policy Commission. In its report on the state of the primary care workforce, A Dire Diagnosis: The Declining Health of Primary Care in Massachusetts and the Urgent Need for Action, the commission states that primary care in Massachusetts is facing many challenges, including provider burnout and patient access barriers. The report further notes that factors adversely impacting primary care are exacerbated for community health centers. The report goes on to recommend policy changes to improve the efficacy and sustainability of primary care in Massachusetts, including increasing spending on primary care, implementing actions to reduce administrative burden and burnout, and implementing strategies to expand the primary care workforce. Visit https://lnkd.in/e_cGDUZE to download the full report. #primarycareshortage #primarycareworkforce #healthcareaccess

Registration for 2025 Community Health Institute attendees is now open! Visit https://lnkd.in/enK7dEZX?to?register, learn about discounts, get a?preliminary agenda,?reserve a hotel room, and obtain other important conference information. Please note that you will need login credentials to access our member portal (my.massleague.org). If you don’t have login credentials, please contact?[email protected] to get added to the system. #2025CHI #CommunityHealthInstitute