718: Funding Community Health Workers, Legal Map Surveys Overdose Laws

SUMMER JOHNSON: 

This is the award-winning Public Health Review Morning Edition for Wednesday, July 31, 2024. I'm Summer Johnson. Now, today's news from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials.

KAREN HACKER 

They believe in the communities. They're from the communities. They speak the languages of the communities.

JOHNSON: 

Community health workers are a bridge between communities and resources. But hundreds hire during the pandemic may lose their jobs unless new funding sources are identified. Dr. Karen Hacker at the CDC says Medicaid and Medicare may be able to help.

HACKER 

Particularly through something that are called the 1115 Demonstration Waivers, states are now opening the doors for community health workers to get reimbursement. In addition to the physician fee schedule, Medicare is now making it possible for community health workers to obtain reimbursement.

JOHNSON: 

Hacker says success will depend on answers to questions about billing for services, certification, and building relationships with providers.

HACKER 

Some states are farther ahead than others have done a lot of work in this area, and so it's a lot cleaner. And they also engaged community health workers in all of those decisions, which we applaud.

JOHNSON: 

Hacker urges public health officials to get involved in the discussion to make sure community health workers aren't pushed out by competing interests.

HACKER 

Because, I will tell you that as soon as reimbursement becomes available, there are always a lot of new parties that come to the table. And I can easily see folks saying no, we're community health workers. No, we're community health workers. And those who've been doing this work for a long time, they actually end up being excluded from being in that conversation.

JOHNSON

ASTHO has a new report about the funding dilemma impacting community health workers. Learn how your agency can keep them on the job. Download it now using the link in the show notes.

JONEIGH KHALDUN

It's really important to note that there's a business case for community health workers. This is not just a nice thing to have.

JOHNSON: 

Former Michigan state health officer and ASTHO alum, Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, knows how important it is to keep community health workers on the team.

KHALDUN

If you're doing public health and quite frankly, if you're doing anything that is seeking to improve health outcomes for everyone, everyone regardless of income, demographic, etc, then you have to be engaged with community health workers.

JOHNSON: 

Today, Khaldun is chief health equity officer at CVS Health, where community health workers are part of the plan.

KHALDUN

We now have community health workers embedded in our care management programs for our Aetna Medicare members. We now have, in Medicaid similarly, we have community health workers on the ground in states who are helping us identify members with health related social needs, and we're helping them to navigate to services.

JOHNSON: 

Hear more of our conversation with Dr. Khaldun on a new episode of the Public Health Review podcast. Available now everywhere you stream audio. There's also a link in the show notes.

Also today, you can review laws and regulations on overdose surveillance policies in a new ASTHO legal map, posted on the organization's Public Health Legal Mapping Center website. Christina Severin says the team looked at two policies, the first being overdose fatality review committees.

CHRISTINA SEVERIN: 

ASTHO looks at whether these committees were established by law, who served on them, so what types of specialties or individuals were serving on those committees, and then also whether they had access to certain types of data.

JOHNSON:

The team also reviewed whether providers are required to check prescription drug monitoring programs, and if there are penalties when they don't.

SEVERIN: 

Nearly all jurisdictions require providers to check the PDMP before they prescribe an opioid to an individual. And nearly all of them have some sort of penalty if a provider violates the law associated with the PDMP somehow.

JOHNSON: 

Severin says the map includes information about laws that were in place as of January 1, 2023. You can see it by clicking the link in the show notes.

JOHNSON: 

Another report, this one a new organizational strategic planning guide, outlines an approach to the process that can help agencies meet their goals. You can download it now using the link in the show notes.

Finally this morning, the pandemic left almost half of all people with disabilities unable to get primary health care. The same was true for those trying to access dental services. ASTHO has a new report of about the impact COVID-19 had on this community. Read it using the link in the show notes.

Before we go, a reminder also to follow this newscast on your podcast player and connect with ASTHO on social media. We're on LinkedIn, Facebook and X.

That'll do it for today. We're back tomorrow morning with more ASTHO news and information.

I'm Summer Johnson. You're listening to the award-winning Public Health Review Morning Edition.

Have a great day.