Proposes Field Strength of 15,000 for the Program McLean, VA – The Association of Clinicians for the Underserved (ACU) expressed its strong appreciated for the President’s FY2016 Budget Request for the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) program today. The President’s Budget would expand the program to include 15,000 primary care providers in underserved communities across the country – the current field strength is roughly 8,500 providers. The NHSC program provides loan repayment and … [Read more...]
Comprehensive Asthma Resource List
August 18, 2014 by
ACU's Comprehensive Asthma Resource List has everything you need to create an asthma care home for your patients. In one location, you can find resources including clinical guidelines, patient education and self-management materials, policy briefs, asthma reports, clinical toolkits, mobile technology and asthma information, and smoking cessation and tobacco materials. Many of the resources are available in both English and Spanish, and some in other languages, including Chinese. Also included … [Read more...]
ACU Sponsors Congressional Briefing
July 14, 2014 by
ACU is sponsoring a Congressional briefing on the ongoing impact of the Budget Control Act of 2011, and the federal "sequester". The briefing, scheduled for July 15th from 12:00-1:30pm, will feature several speakers on various health care topics. Tim Starkey, the CEO of Great Salt Plains Health Center in Cherokee, Oklahoma, and also the current president of the Oklahoma Primary Care Association, will be speaking on behalf of ACU. Starkey will be speaking specifically to the impact of … [Read more...]
ACU Partners with Community Health Vote!
June 12, 2014 by
The Association of Clinicians for the Underserved (ACU) has joined a partnership with Community Health Vote to promote and assist safety net providers and community organizations in developing non-partisan voter engagement programs. In an effort to involve as many of the 1,200 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC’s) as possible, Community Health Vote has focused its Get-Out-the-Vote efforts and nonpartisan voter registration on the nearly 22.5 million FQHC patients. The implementation of … [Read more...]
Senate Panel Discusses Tobacco Regulation
May 22, 2014 by
Washington, D.C. (May 22, 2014) — Last week a hearing was convened to discuss the state of tobacco use and regulation in the United States. Sens. Tom Harkin, D-IA, Richard Burr, R-N.C., Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., and Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., examined both the extraordinary public health efforts that have driven down tobacco use and the enormous challenges that remain. Panel members, Dr. Tim McAfee of the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health and Mitch Zeller of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco … [Read more...]
ACU Board Member Testifies Before Congress
April 24, 2014 by
Association of Clinicians for the Underserved (ACU) was front and center at a U.S. Senate hearing on the primary care workforce. The hearing, held by the Senate HELP Subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging [press release], “Addressing Primary Care Access and Workforce Challenges: Voices from the Field” focused on the primary care access crisis, doctor shortages and strategies to boost the number of providers around the country. Jim Hotz, MD, a member of ACU’s Board of Directors and founder of … [Read more...]
FY15 Budget to Propose Expansion of NHSC
February 27, 2014 by
Increase in FY15 and Extension of Funding Beyond FY16 McLean, VA – The Association of Clinicians for the Underserved (ACU) applauds the White House proposal to extend the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) program through FY2020 and expand the program to include up to 15,000 primary care providers. The program provides loan repayment and scholarships for primary care providers who work in underserved areas of the country. "The President has shown once again that he strongly supports this … [Read more...]
Congressional Budget Deal Unveiled
December 11, 2013 by
Sequester Will Still Cut NHSC Funding We have written several times about the sequester’s impact on the National Health Service Corps, and like many, had hoped that the entire sequester would be eliminated through the bipartisan budget negotiations. However, the Budget Deal announced today leaves intact the part of the sequester that impacts the NHSC funding. The Budget Deal does reduce a large portion of the cuts on the discretionary side of budget. This means that programs that are … [Read more...]
Health Insurance Marketplace Launches
October 1, 2013 by
Beginning today -- October 1 -- uninsured people can shop online for health insurance. If they enroll by December 15, their coverage will begin on January 1, 2014. The Health Insurance Marketplace for consumer is one of the most significant provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Millions of currently uninsured people will gain access to affordable insurance, some of them with subsidies, through the marketplace. Information for consumers is available at healthcare.gov (English) or … [Read more...]
What a Government Shutdown Means to Health Programs
September 24, 2013 by
By Craig A. Kennedy, MPH By now you’ve heard or read enough news to know that a government shutdown is very possible come October 1st, but what does it mean to health care delivery? Well, as you would expect, it means different things to different programs. Let’s start with the definition of a “government shutdown.” The federal government’s fiscal year runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30, so by October 1st of each year Congress must pass and the President must sign appropriations bills to … [Read more...]
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