HRSA May in Brief

PAS honored HRSA Maternal and Child Health Bureau Associate Administrator Dr. Michael Warren with the William Silverman Award during the PAS Annual Meeting held April 27 – May 1 in Washington, DC. The award is an honorary lectureship that recognizes an individual’s contributions to improving maternal and child health across the country. As part of his lecture, Dr. Warren described the concrete ways pediatricians have improved health care for children and challenged the audience to eliminate disparities in infant mortality by 2030.

HRSA Administrator Carole Johnson met staff and patients at Cahaba Medical Care in Centreville, Alabama, on May 19 to announce $67 million in new HRSA funding for health centers to improve maternal health services in underserved communities nationwide. Awardees will use funds to implement innovative approaches to improve maternal health outcomes and reduce disparities for patients at highest risk. For example, Cahaba Health Care will use their award to integrate behavioral health in maternal health care services for women in rural Alabama. 

Nurse leaders from across HRSA celebrated National Nurses Week (May 6 – 12), including being recognized for their service at HRSA’s May All-Hands meeting. Nurses at HRSA are helping underserved and rural communities get the care they need and helping train the next generation of nurses. Two recently released grant opportunities to support the nursing workforce are the Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention (NEPQR) Simulation Education Training (SET) Program and the Maternity Care Nursing Workforce Expansion (MatCare) Program. 

HRSA celebrated the first anniversary of the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline on May 14. Since its launch on Mother’s Day 2022, the hotline’s professional counselors have provided emotional support, resources, and referrals to almost 12,000 pregnant and postpartum individuals who struggled with mental health concerns, and their loved ones. 

Check out some of the news coverage: 

NBC News: National Maternal Mental Health Hotline received over 12,000 calls and texts in its first year 

Good Morning America: Commemorating National Maternal Mental Health Month with new hotline

PBS: What the U.S. is doing to address its deepening maternal mortality crisis
 

HRSA awarded more than $147 million to 49 recipients to advance the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE) initiative. The initiative aims to reduce the number of new HIV infections in the United States by at least 90 percent by 2030. This funding will help states and metropolitan areas with the highest levels of HIV transmission link people with HIV to essential care, support, and treatment, as well as support training and other resources for these jurisdictions.

FORHP senior leaders visited Hill Hospital of Sumter County in York, Alabama, on May 1 to learn about initiatives to increase access to quality health care for rural Alabama communities. Hill Hospital participates in HRSA’s Delta Region Community Health Systems Development Program, which provides technical assistance to rural hospitals and clinics in the eight states of the Mississippi Delta Region. Working closely with the Delta Regional Authority, this program helps rural Delta communities to strengthen their health care delivery system through direct support of financial and operational efficiency and quality improvement. 

HRSA’s Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs convened a behavioral health workforce summit in Newton, Massachusetts, with HRSA grantee William James College. HRSA Deputy Regional Administrator CAPT Chris Bersani and William James College President Nicholas Covino provided opening remarks and several HRSA grantees and behavioral health experts presented during the event, alongside Massachusetts Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kate Walsh, and Secretary Lauren Jones from Massachusetts’ Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development. The summit also featured a panel where William James College students shared firsthand perspectives about how HRSA loan and scholarship programs have enabled them to receive the education and professional development needed to enter the behavioral health workforce.

HRSA IEA hosted a grants workshop in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, to bring together organizations from across rural western Nebraska to learn about HRSA programs, resources, funding opportunities, and the federal grant application process. HRSA IEA hosts Grants 101 workshops across the country to reach new populations and promote HRSA funding opportunities, especially in rural and underserved communities.

HRSA’s Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs hosted a forum on leveraging HRSA resources to address substance use disorder in New York City's primary care settings. The Deputy Commissioner of the New York State Department of Health, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and the New York City Police Department presented during the forum. HRSA staff highlighted HRSA programs, including the Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery Loan Repayment Program, and local HRSA-funded health centers, Housing Works Community Healthcare, Damian Family Care Centers, and VIP Community Services shared their work to address substance use disorder in the community. 

HRSA Deputy Regional Administrator Colleen McCarty spoke on a panel during the HHS Region 4 Women’s Health Week Community Conversation Panel. The event was hosted by HRSA grantee, Recovery Consultants of Atlanta, and provided an opportunity for federal, state, and local leaders to discuss how to improve the health of women and girls. Deputy Regional Administrator McCarty promoted HRSA programs and resources including the Health Center Program, National Maternal Mental Health Hotline, and Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program.