Rural Health
News by Topic: Maternal health and prenatal care

HRSA: Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission to OMB for Review and Approval; Public Comment Request; Maternal and Child Health Jurisdictional Survey Instrument for the Title V MCH Block Grant Program Federal Register

Jan 17, 2025 - Notice from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) seeking comments on an information collection titled "Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Jurisdictional Survey Instrument for the Title V MCH Block Grant Program, OMB No. 0906-0042—Revision." The MCH Jurisdictional Survey is designed to produce data on the physical and emotional health of mothers and children under 18 years of age in the following eight jurisdictions—American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of Palau, Puerto Rico, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and U.S. Virgin Islands. Proposed revisions include further updates to survey questions to align with new Federal data standards, including updated guidance from OMB on collecting information on race and ethnicity. Comments are due by February 18, 2025.

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Health Officials Concerned a Future Doctor Shortage Will Hit Rural Communities Hardest

Jan 15, 2025 - Describes current and projected physician workforce shortages in Minnesota. Notes that shortages are most acute in rural areas and in key fields including pediatrics, family medicine, and obstetrics. Discusses the impact of shortages on healthcare access and incentives to recruit new physicians.

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HRSA Administrator Carole Johnson, Joined by Co-Chair of the Congressional Black Maternal Health Caucus Congresswoman Lauren Underwood, Announces New Funding, Policy Action, and Report to Mark Landmark Year of HRSA's Enhancing Maternal Health Initiative

Jan 15, 2025 - Announces the final policy and funding initiatives from the Enhancing Maternal Health Initiative from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Funded work will sustain the work of the year long initiative and also develop recommendations for preventing cardiovascular conditions in women. Includes a report on the work of the committee and highlights work throughout 2024 including rural health initiatives.

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CMS: Medicare and Medicaid Programs: Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment and Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment Systems; Quality Reporting Programs, Including the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting Program; Health and Safety Standards for Obstetrical Services in Hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals; Prior Authorization; Requests for Information; Medicaid and CHIP Continuous Eligibility; Medicaid Clinic Services Four Walls Exceptions; Individuals Currently or Formerly in Custody of Penal Authorities; Revision to Medicare Special Enrollment Period for Formerly Incarcerated Individuals; and All-Inclusive Rate Add-On Payment for High-Cost Drugs Provided by Indian Health Service and Tribal Facilities; Correcting Amendment Federal Register

Jan 13, 2025 - Notice from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) making technical and typographic corrections to the November 27, 2024, final rule. This correcting amendment is effective January 8, 2025, and is applicable beginning January 1, 2025.

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MaineHealth Receives HRSA Grant to Enhance Rural Obstetric Training

Jan 3, 2025 - Announces a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) funded project to establish new rural obstetric training graduate medical education opportunities in Maine. The goal of the program is to increase access to specialty care for pregnant patients in rural communities.

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Study: Obstetrics Units in Rural Communities Declining

Dec 30, 2024 - Describes the findings of new research on hospital obstetric units published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Notes that, between 2010 and 2022, a greater proportion of rural hospitals lacked obstetric services compared to urban hospitals. Discusses the wide-ranging health implications for rural mothers and babies, and provides an overview of proposed federal legislation to address the issue.

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Another Birthing Center Closes, WY Maternal Health Struggles Continue

Dec 26, 2024 - Highlights the discontinuation of labor and delivery services in some rural Wyoming communities due to low demand. Discusses efforts to increase reimbursement rates for Medicaid births to help stabilize rural labor and delivery services. Notes the potential impacts of lower birth rates on the quality of care.

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Not All Expectant Moms Can Reach a Doctor's Office. This Kentucky Clinic Travels to Them.

Dec 24, 2024 - Profiles a mobile clinic offering maternal healthcare to women who struggle with access in rural Eastern Kentucky, noting the maternal health disparities in the area. Discusses the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) grant funding the program and sustainability plans.

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Gaps in Mental Health Training, Rural Access to Care Compound Az's Maternal Mortality Crisis

Dec 19, 2024 - Reports on trends in maternal health and mortality in Arizona and drivers of poor outcomes such as limited mental health training for providers, mental health workforce shortages, and stigma. Discusses rural-specific challenges in accessing care like transportation, labor and delivery service access, broadband, and low provider reimbursement rates for care.

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FCC Launches New Maternal Health Mapping Platform

Dec 13, 2024 - Announces a major update to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Mapping Broadband Health in America platform. Notes that the tool can be used to analyze data at the intersection of broadband connectivity and a range of public health challenges, now including maternal morbidity and mortality.

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