Association News

There are many roads to a health care system focused on achieving the three-part aim of better health, better care, and reduced expenditures through improvement initiatives.  As the health care system and our overall population health continue to change, the need to align our resources on true practice transformation in primary care practices has become more urgent.

The WVPCA will be hosting the 28th Annual Conference, August 14-16, 2013 at Oglebay Resort & Conference Center in Wheeling, WV.  The theme of this year's conference is Aligning Quality, Cost and Data...does your organization need an alignment?  The interactive sessions at the conference will provide participants with information and tools to re-boot and navigate the roads leading to collectively creating a culture of continuous quality improvement to establish WV health centers of excellence for the delivery of primary care.

The WV Health Insurance Marketplace is rapidly evolving and taking shape.  In order to help provide timely and comprehensive information to you about Medicaid expansion and the Health Insurance Marketplace (Exchange), the WVPCA has created a webpage dedicated to Outreach/Enrollment. We will also include updates in this weekly eNewsletter.

In addition to providing current and relevant information, we are creating a toolkit to assist your organization in your outreach and enrollment efforts.  The toolkit will include templates to use for "inreach" and "outreach" efforts.  We will also continue to work with the OIC and CMS for training and educational opportunities for your staff.

On Wednesday, May 29 at 2:00pm ET the National Association of Community Health Centers is offering a free one-hour webinar to discuss important 340B drug discount policy issues. The webinar, led by Roger Schwartz and Mike Glomb, will provide an overview and discussion on 340B contract pharmacy rules and policies and related issues, including health center use and charges for 340B drugs for Medicaid Managed Care enrollees. Click HERE for additional information and enrollment.

Our congratulations to CEO Kip Smith and the staff at Roane County Family Health Care in Spencer, WV for achieving Patient-Centered Medical Home recognition from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) utilizing 2011 PCMH Standards. To see the press release from RCFHC, please click HERE.

The WVPCA will present a face to face Emergency Management for Community Health Centers event, the "WV Threat Prep Coordinators' Emergency Management Forum" on Thursday, May 30 in Flatwoods, WV from 10:00 am to 2:30 pm..

Community health centers and free clinics can play a vital role during emergencies, not only as a first responder but as the front line source of care.   The WVPCA Emergency Management Forum will provide an invaluable opportunity for networking with other health centers and free clinics with similar needs and interest.  Additional opportunities include learning more about the WV State Health Care System coalition building initiatives, hear what others are doing to enhance their emergency management programs, share your emergency management promising practices, experiences, or accomplishments.   What a great way to generate new ideas for emergency management planning and the creation of new partnerships with other health care systems and local community organizations!

The WVPCA hosted the first events in a series of Care Team Management (CTM) workshops on Thursday, Feb. 7 in South Charleston, and on Friday, Feb. 8 in Morgantown, WV. The events were attended by a combined total of 84 participants representing 16 community health centers.

Health center advocates are invited and encouraged to join the NACHC policy staff on a free Tele-Town Hall call on Wednesday, Feb. 13 at 2:00pm ET.

Attendees on the call will hear updates on sequestration, including what funding impact health centers across the nation may be facing.  There will also be an opportunity provided to ask the policy staff questions.

The WVPCA is pleased to announce that Scott Brannon has joined the staff as the Chief Information Officer.  Scott will be involved with the following initiatives:

•    Development of CHC data repository
•    EHR adoption and implementation
•    Attainment of  meaningful use
•    PCMH recognition

John Schultz is the former CEO of Community Health Net, the only FQHC located in northwestern Pennsylvania. Community Health Net provides primary medical, dental, vision and pharmacy services to 16,000 underserved individuals annually in their service area.

As Community Health Net's CEO, Mr. Schultz successfully developed and implemented a five year financial recovery plan for the organization, allowing it to recover from Chapter 11 protection within the first four years of his plan. He was also able to double the organization's revenue through strategic planning and initiating successful community collaborations.

The deadline for voter registration here in West Virginia is drawing near and we'd like to know how efforts are going at your health center.

The National Association of Health Centers has let us know that to date, community health centers throughout the US have registered over 7,000 new or updated voters. NACHC is also utilizing a Pledge to Vote form that will allow them to send out reminders to new voters.

Lincoln Primary Care Center has a history of providing programs and activities that foster healthy lifestyles to the surrounding communities. A case in point is our Families In Touch program, better known as F.I.T. Camp.

F.I.T. Camp promotes healthy lifestyle choices by focusing on nutrition, physical activity, and overall well-being. We partner with the Lincoln County WVU Extension Office to provide the nutrition education component. Lincoln Primary Care Center staff and other community volunteers also play a role in pulling it all together.

Early in 2010, when New River Health Association received our UDS clinical measures results, our Leadership Team decided to target Pap smears as a measure for improvement in 2011. Our number of women age 25-64 getting timely screening Pap smears had declined over two years and we knew we needed to help our female patients get this important screening test.

It's official! The Provider Sponsored Network (PSN) legislation that our members and supporters have worked diligently to have passed has been signed into law.

Many of our members traveled to our state's Capitol complex to witness the bill being signed by Governor Earl Ray Tomblin in a special ceremonial event held following last week's Board meeting.

An organization is a conversation before it is anything else:  it begins with people talking together about something they would like to do that is beyond their capacity to do as individuals.
~Anthony Suchman, MD - Leading Change in Healthcare

Its 7:45 am on a Thursday morning at the Clendenin Health Center and the expanded clinical team has gathered around a pot of coffee with their laptops for the weekly huddle.  Team members present at the huddle include medical and behavioral health providers, pharmacists, medical assistants, health coaches, patient service representatives, and administrators.

At the start of the meeting someone volunteers to read the opening statement that helps clarify the purpose of the huddles - We gather here this morning to combine our skills and knowledge to assist our patients to understand their health condition, to clarify their goals and to take actions that will improve their well-being.

Our congratulations go out to Martha Carter, CEO and FamilyCare HealthCenter in Madison, WV for their participation in the National Committee for Quality Assurance's (NCQA) Physician Recognition Program and the achievement of PPC-PCMH Level 3 status.

Recognized in this award are FamilyCare staff members Ronald Chattin, DO; Jason Frazier, MD; and Holly Murriner, PAC.

*** UPDATE: Trainings scheduled for Martinsburg and Sutton have been canceled. The training scheduled for Nov. 9 in Charleston will still take place.  For more information, please contact Terri Barrett at (304) 346-0032.

The WVPCA is hosting three Regional Emergency Preparedness Forums on Nov. 7, 8, and 9th in Martinsburg, Sutton, and Charleston. This is the perfect opportunity to bring community partners together to participate in building the community partner relationships necessary to successfully deal with an emergency event in your region.  Take part in tabletop exercises and come out to work on developing partnerships with your local partners. 

Join the WVPCA and health center advocates across the nation on Thursday, October 13, 2011, to unite with one voice to call upon Congress and the White House to protect our CHCs and the patients they serve!

We need EVERY Health Center Advocate to act! The President and Congressional leaders are RIGHT NOW considering proposals to address federal spending, some of which could literally zero out funding for the Health Centers Program or drastically cut critically important programs like Medicaid.

On Friday, Sept. 23 at 2:00pm the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration is offering a webinar that will help you determine your preparedness for ICD-10 conversion.  This webinar will provide technical assistance and examples of how safety net providers from various settings have begun planning to comply with the health industry's conversion to a greatly expanded and fundamentally new coding system for the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10).

As a prerequisite to ICD-10 compliance, healthcare organizations are also required to adopt updated electronic transaction standards, known as HIPAA 5010, by January 1, 2012.

In conjunction with National Health Center Week 2011 and in celebration of 35 years of service, Valley Health Systems, Inc. held a groundbreaking ceremony in Huntington on August 12th for a new community health center facility to be located adjacent to the Prestera Campus. 

Each year, the second week in August is dedicated to the recognition of the service and contributions of community health centers in providing access to affordable, high quality, cost-effective health care to vulnerable and underserved populations throughout the United States.  This year's celebration will take place August 7th through August 13th.

Health Center Week's theme for 2011 is "Celebrating America's Health Centers: Serving Locally, Leading Nationally."  This theme is designed to provide an opportunity to showcase the progress community health centers have made towards fulfilling the goal of the "Access for All America" plan to provide medical homes to 30 million patients by 2015.

Please let us know what events you may be planning for this week so we can share it with the national office.  We are happy to assist you with questions regarding advocacy tactics and publicizing your event. Feel free to utilize the WVPCA's Advocate Sign Up form at your event. Contact Pam Moore (click to email) or call us at (304) 346-0032.

Health Center advocacy takes center stage this week, with a series of specific actions needed to help preserve and protect Medicaid as the White House and Congress negotiate a compromise on increasing the nation's debt ceiling before an August 2 deadline.

A couple of points to consider:

• West Virginia Community Health Centers serve as medical homes for 91,495 Medicaid beneficiaries - roughly 50% of the state's total Medicaid population.
• Medicaid is the single largest revenue source for West Virginia Community Health Centers.  Today, 34% of our patient revenue comes from Medicaid.
• Adequate Medicaid reimbursement is absolutely essential to Health Center fiscal solvency.
• Health Centers provide high-quality, low-cost care to more than 20 million Americans, including nearly 375,000 West Virginians.
• Health Centers drive savings through the entire health care system, providing an alternative to costly ER visits and unnecessary hospital admissions.

• June 6:    Martinsburg, Comfort Inn
• June 7:    Morgantown, WVU Health Sciences Center
• June 8:    Wheeling, Oglebay Park, Pine Room
• June 9:    Parkersburg, Blennerhassett Hotel
• June 13:  Beckley, Tamarack
• June 14:  Charleston, Municipal Auditorium
• June 16:  Huntington, Big Sandy Arena
• June  17: Flatwoods, Days Hotel

WVPCA staff and Cabin Creek Health Center CEO Craig Robinson joined about 100 other health reform advocates Wednesday (March 23) in celebrating the one-year anniversary of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Remarks by U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-WV, and Mary Wakefield, PhD, RN, head of the federal Health Resources and Services Administration, punctuated the event at the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department.

Rockefeller said West Virginia is likely the state with the most to gain, and the most to lose, as Congress debates the future of health reform.

(pictured: WVPCA's CFO/COO Sherri Ferrell, left, makes a point with HRSA Administrator Mary Wakefield, as Kenny Perdue of the AFL-CIO looks on.)

The West Virginia Primary Care Association announces the hiring of Shirley Jividen in a newly created position as Director of Quality and Information Management.

"Shirley brings a wealth of experience to the table in health care, information technology and management, including specific experience in working with community health centers," said WVPCA CEO Louise Reese. "Her expertise will help our members demonstrate the proficiency of the team-based, medical home model of care that we already have in place."

It's time to consider how health care reform impacts reimbursement at federally qualified health centers (FQHCs). What, if anything, will change in the revenue and/or billing process since reimbursement is more than half of the average FQHC's annual revenue?

• An overview of the new coding systems that you'll use as coverage expands and new rules for pre existing conditions come into effect;
• Benchmarking tools to analyze existing operations and FQHC billing best practices; 
• An understanding of the changes in payment methodology for Medicare; and, 
• Approaches to successfully managing new and increased revenue opportunities.

(Charleston) – Five West Virginia community health centers are among recipients of federal grants under the Affordable Care Act to upgrade their facilities, expand services and provide care for thousands of underserved patients.

The awards were announced Friday by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.

The WVPCA is pleased to announce that Andrew Wessels has accepted the position of Director of Business Development.  He began employment with our organization on September 7, 2010.  Prior to accepting this position, Mr. Wessels worked at BrickStreet Mutual Insurance Company for six years as the Director of Corporate Affairs.  In this capacity, he directed an award-winning professional staff who successfully branded and marketed the re-organized agency. 

MARTINSBURG - Shenandoah Valley Health Center's latest accolade puts it in a tremendous leadership role for the community's health care, Terri Bliziotes said Tuesday.

With its recent recognition as a Patient-Centered Medical Home by the National Committee for Quality Assurance, SVHC is on the cutting edge of health care, she said.

Bliziotes runs a private consulting firm in Charleston, Peak Performance Consulting, and coordinated SVHC's effort to become recognized for its high standards of health care.

"The framework for the medical home is the framework for reform," she said. "All medical care is local and SVHC is working with local providers to provide a medical home."

Patient-Centered Medical Home, trademarked by NCQA, is health care that revolves around the care the patient needs, when the patient needs it, Bliziotes explained. It is comprehensive, coordinated, integrated services, she said, which SVHC epitomizes.

June 21st, 2010 saw the initial opening of a new community health center location for the FamilyCare organization in Eleanor, WV.  CEO Martha Carter tells us that the funds for this new location can be attributed to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act's Capitol Improvement Project funds, along with a WV Rural Health Systems grant, a loan from the Center for Rural Health Development and an appropriation by Shelly Moore Capito.

Congratulations go out to Shenandoah Valley Medical System, Inc. (SVMS) in Martinsburg, WV for obtaining certification from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA)  in recognition of achieving the status, Level 1 for Physician Practice Connections - Patient Centered Medical Home.

In celebration of National Health Center Week (August 8-14, 2010), the National Association of Community Health Centers is encouraging participation in a national video contest.  This is an excellent way to let your community, your elected officials, and most importantly your local health center know just how vital and important they are to you and your family.  A video can be a fun way to share your unique story of what the health center means to you, and it is a great way to advocate on behalf of the health center!

The West Virginia Primary Care Association presents a Health Information Technology Conference that you won't want to miss.  Join us on June 23, 2010 at the Ramada Inn in South Charleston.

The New England Journal of Medicine released a new article, Health Care Reform and Primary Care:  The Growing Importance of the Community Health Center.  The article highlights the percentage of population from each state recieving care from a community health center.  West Virginia is the highest in the nation, at 19%.  
 

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, including the package of reconciliation amendments signed into law on March 30, 2010, contains new tools to aid the government in identifying and pursuing recovery for allegedly fraudulent, wasteful, or abusive practices, according to a March 31, 2010, newsletter from the law firm Foley and Lardner LLP.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- There's a serenity about her, a calm confidence that instills trust, whether she's birthing a baby or building a health-care business.

She was shaped by a tumultuous era of unrest and change, influenced by the women's movement, the battle for civil rights and opposition to an unwinnable war. Ideals of social justice spawned a career based on the universal need for proper health care.

In 1986, Cincinnati native Martha Carter arrived here to work as a certified nurse midwife at a Teays Valley birth center. She spearheaded the center's expansion to WomenCare and now, FamilyCare.

Thirty-two million people that the healthcare reform bill will help get insurance could mean more business for health centers, especially in rural areas.

Right now, many uninsured people don't go to the doctor for check-ups.

The WVPCA congratulates Amber Crist of Cabin Creek Health Systems for receiving the Geiger-Gibson Award from the National Association of Community Health Centers.

Did your Community Health Center open before 1965?  If so, the National Association of Community Health Centers would like to hear from you!