HHS and ASPR Detail $5 Billion 'Project NextGen' Initiative to Stay Ahead of COVID-19 |
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An initial investment of $5 billion, collectively referred to as Project NextGen, will accelerate and streamline the rapid development of the next generation of vaccines and treatments through public-private collaborations.
Based at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and led by ASPR's Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH’s) National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Project NextGen will coordinate across the federal government and the private sector to advance the pipeline of new, innovative vaccines and therapeutics into clinical trials and potential review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for authorization or approval, and commercial availability for the American people.
Read the full fact sheet from ASPR online. |
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Updated National Health Care Preparedness and Response Capabilities Available for Pre-Decisional Review |
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HHS ASPR is currently updating the
Health Care Preparedness and Response Capabilities to reflect insights learned from recent disasters. The updated capabilities provide more specificity around what the entire health care delivery system can do to save lives and continue to function in advance of, during, and after a response. The updated capabilities also prioritize equity in all activities, with the goal of ensuring access to consistent levels of care in underserved and historically marginalized communities and at-risk individuals.
Over the last year, HHS ASPR conducted targeted engagement with those working at all levels of health care preparedness and response, from frontline providers to state and federal operations staff, to gather input for the updated capabilities. We are now sharing the draft, for a pre-decisional review, with a wide range of partners. We will accept comments until Friday, June 9 via the Online Comment Matrix.
You can access the pre-decisional draft for your review here, as well as the
frequently asked questions (FAQs) that provide additional background and clarifications. We will host four informational sessions, listed below with registration links. We strongly encourage those reviewing the updated capabilities to read the FAQs and attend one of the informational sessions.
Informational sessions:
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Register for Tuesday, May 16, 4:00 – 4:30 PM ET
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Register for Friday, May 19, 2:30 – 3:00 PM ET
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Register for Monday, May 22, 10:30 – 11:00 AM ET
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Register for Tuesday, May 23, 1:30 – 2:00 PM ET
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HOSPITAL PREPAREDNESS PROGRAM COOPERATIVE
AGREEMENT RECIPIENTS |
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Fiscal Year (FY) 2023/Budget Period (BP) 5 Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP) Cooperative Agreement Continuation Guidance Application Deadline Extended |
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The HPP FY 2023/Budget Period 5 non-competing applications are due in GrantSolutions by 11:59 PM ET on Tuesday, May 16, 2023.
Recipients should submit their applications based on the planning numbers in the continuation application instructions. ASPR will notify recipients when the final HPP FY 2023 funding table is available and the final award amounts are updated in the FY 2023/BP5 HPP application module in PERFORMS. The FY 2023/BP5 HPP application module will remain open in in PERFORMS until the final award amounts are uploaded into PERFORMS, and the application submit button is greyed out in PERFORMS.
The following supplemental materials are posted in the 1901-05 (BP5) HPP Cooperative Agreement folder in the PERFORMS Resource Library:
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BP5 HPP Health Care Coalition Scope of Work
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FY23-BP5 HPP Recipient and HCC Work Plan Checklist
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HPP BP5 Application Special Surge Annex and Exercise Summary for a Single HCC
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HPP BP5 Application HCC Surge Annex and TTX Exercise Summary Table
Recipients should contact their assigned field project officer with any questions. |
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Medical Response Surge Exercise (MRSE) Office Hours |
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The MRSE Support Team will host a series of office hours to discuss the MRSE through June 2023. These sessions are intended to provide support and discuss any questions about planning and executing the MRSE. The next MRSE Office Hours session is scheduled for Thursday, May 25 from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM ET. Note that registration is required. After registering here,
you will receive an email with a link to join the meeting and a Zoom invite to add to your calendar.
Please submit questions to the MRSE mailbox prior to the scheduled office hours session to assist the MRSE Support Team in tailoring the discussion to certain topics of interest. You may also request a one-on-one session with the MRSE Support Team by emailing the MRSE mailbox. |
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Upcoming Recipient Meetings |
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Meeting Name |
Recipient Group |
Event Details |
ASPR Health Care Readiness Cooperative
Agreements Quarterly All-Recipients Webinar |
All Recipients |
Wednesday, May 24
2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Registration Information
| Note: ASPR will update this table in each issue of the Bulletin as additional meetings are scheduled. Recordings and transcripts from previous webinars can be accessed on the ASPR Health Care Readiness Programs Webinars
webpage. |
COVID-19 Clinical Rounds: A Peer-to-Peer Virtual Community of Practice |
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COVID-19 Clinical Rounds are resource webinars intended for consultant physicians involved in critical care practice, fellows, residents, pharmacists, nursing staff, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, respiratory therapists, and allied health staff. All previous recordings can be found on the HHS ASPR Project ECHO COVID-19 Clinical Rounds website. |
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First Responder Resiliency TeleECHO Program |
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The First Responder Resiliency ECHO Program is aimed at increasing self-care and resiliency in crisis. This interdisciplinary team, led by a group of subject matter experts including Dr. George Everly, an internationally acknowledged disaster psychologist, and Dr. Jeff Katzman, a leading expert in trauma and resiliency, has expertise in a variety of specialties including: critical incidence trauma care, psychiatry, emergency and pre-hospital medicine, law enforcement mental health, and pastoral care. These sessions are held every other Monday from 4:00 - 5:00 PM ET. |
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Upcoming Trainings and Webinars |
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Event |
Event Details |
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) |
Infection Prevention and Control Post COVID-19 PHE: Recommendations for Health Care Professionals
In this town hall, hosted by the CDC's Project Firstline, CDC officials will review the updates to these recommendations and the infection control actions that continue to be effective at stopping the spread of respiratory viruses in health care. This town hall will also feature a panel of health care professionals that will discuss how they will operationalize these updated recommendations in their diverse facilities. |
Tuesday, May 16
12:30 PM ET
Connection Information |
National Association of City and County Health Officials (NACCHO) |
Swimming Safe with the Latest Edition of the Model Aquatic Health Code (MAHC)
Based on science-based guidance from CDC, the Model Aquatic Health Code is a national pool code and resource guide that can help local and state authorities and the aquatics sector make swimming and other water activities healthier and safer for their communities. This webinar will review the latest changes to the Model Aquatic Health Code (MAHC) and provide details on how to submit change requests for the fifth edition update cycle. |
Tuesday, May 16
1:00 - 2:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) |
Hepatitis B Screening Recommendations Webinar
In recognition that May is Hepatitis Awareness Month, the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC) is hosting a webinar to brief clinicians and other health care providers about the release of new recommendations for hepatitis B screening and testing. The call will discuss how the updated recommendations differ from the 2008 recommendations, explain the rationale for the changes and why the updated recommendations are beneficial. Participants will have an opportunity to ask questions about the science supporting these changes and the expected impact of these recommendations. |
Tuesday, May 16
1:00 - 2:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
National Institutes of Health (NIH) |
Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) Director's Webinar: Violence as a Public Health Problem: What we Know, and Where we are Going
The United States had more mass shootings than days of the year in 2022, and firearm injury has overtaken car crashes as the leading cause of death for American children. Meanwhile, our youth — particularly young women and sexual- and gender-minority youth — are reporting unprecedented rates of depression and suicidal thoughts. In this talk, work that illuminates the current state of knowledge on physical, digital, and firearm violence and co-occurring disorders (such as depressive symptoms and substance use disorder) will be presented. Novel approaches to studying, preventing, and treating these interdependent crises across the social-ecological model will also be discussed. Attendees will leave with clarity on what we know, what we don’t know,
and where we need to move faster. |
Tuesday, May 16
2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) |
2023 CSTE Annual Disaster Epidemiology Workshop
The virtual workshop’s theme, “The Path Forward: The Different Elements of Disaster Epidemiology” will feature presentations and panel discussions related to applied epidemiology and lessons learned from previous and ongoing preparedness and response operations and activities. |
Tuesday, May 16 - Thursday, May 18
Registration Information |
CDC |
"This is a T.E.S.T." – A Tabletop Exercise Simulation Tool: Gamification of Tabletop Exercises
CDC presenters Lauren Finklea and Myron Douglas will provide an overview and demonstration for a new innovative approach to tabletop exercises with the cooperative board game, this is a T.E.S.T. Participants will explore cause and effect of incident decision-making during a radiation emergency requiring the use of a community reception center (CRC). This presentation will also provide information on how to access This is a T.E.S.T. and request to be selected for the pilot evaluation of sites around the country. |
Thursday, May 18
1:00 - 2:00 PM ET
Connection Information |
CDC |
Updated Recommendations for COVID-19 Vaccine Use
During this CDC Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) Call, presenters will review recommendations for mpox testing, vaccination, treatment, and prevention. With new mpox cases occurring in some people who are vaccinated, it is important that clinicians quickly identify cases to limit a possible mpox resurgence this summer in the United States. |
Thursday, May 18
2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Connection Information |
CDC |
COVID-19 Response-Related Strategies Webinar
Innovative case investigation and contact tracing tools used during COVID-19 and other emergency responses will be the topic of a CDC response-related strategies webinar. During the webinar, presenters from the California, Maryland, and Tennessee health departments will discuss their innovated response strategies related to case investigation and contact tracing. |
Thursday, May 18
2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Connection Information |
HRSA |
National Maternal Mental Health Hotline
HRSA launched the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline (NMMHH) on Mother’s Day, May 8, 2022. In celebration of Maternal Mental Health Month in May and the hotline’s first year anniversary, the NMMHH team is pleased to invite you to an informational webinar to provide insights on how the hotline works, key metrics in the first year, and what your patients/clients can expect when you refer them to the Hotline. |
Monday, May 22
1:00 - 1:45 PM ET
Connection Information |
CDC |
Response All-State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial (STLT) Update Call
CDC will provide information and updates on public health emergency responses and will reserve time to answer questions. The STLT update calls are intended for PHEP directors and all other STLT public health staff, as well as national and federal partners. |
Monday, May 22
2:00 - 2:45 PM ET
Connection Information |
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) |
Climate Change and Children's Health and Well- Being in the United States Report
The EPA will be hosting a webinar to introduce the EPA Climate Change and Children’s Health and Well-Being in the U.S. Report. During this webinar, the EPA will present on a report which quantifies future health risks to children for a sub-set of climate stressors. |
Monday, May 22
2:30 - 3:30 PM ET
Registration Information |
NIH |
National Advisory Council on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Public Health Service Act section 464z-3(j), 42 U.S.C. 285t(j), gives the Secretary of Health and Human Services the authority to establish an advisory council to provide advice regarding the Institute's research and research training activities with respect to minority health issues. The National Advisory Council on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NACMHD) advises the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the NIH Director, and the NIMHD Director on matters related to the NIMHD’s mission. |
Tuesday, May 23
8:30 AM ET
Connection Information |
Safeside Prevention |
Safeside Prevention for Suicide Prevention in Rural Communities
The UR Medicine Recovery Center of Excellence,
with funding from HRSA partnered with SafeSide Prevention to provide a workshop focused on suicide prevention training for service providers in rural communities. Learn a systematic framework for suicide prevention that can be applied in rural communities, with a special focus on youth, substance use, and Indigenous or Tribal communities. |
Tuesday, May 23
12:30 - 3:30 PM ET
Connection Information |
National Center for Farmworker Health, Inc. |
Ag Worker Health 102: Supporting Agricultural Worker Health
This webinar will cover the most relevant current agricultural worker policy issues and explore effective service delivery models. Presenters will also highlight training and technical assistance opportunities and share resources and promising practices to support health center staff in the implementation of service delivery changes and adaptations when serving the agricultural worker population. |
Tuesday, May 23
2:00 - 3:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) |
FDA Drug Topics: How to Avoid Medication Errors with Pen Injectors
FDA's
Division of Drug Information in the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) will be presenting a series of educational webinars targeting the needs of all health care professionals and students, including physicians, physician assistants, nurses, pharmacists, and pharmacy technicians. This webinar will provide participants with important safety information to help patients and caregivers avoid medication errors with these products, whether intended for use institutionally or at home. The presenters will share information derived from a review of medication error reports submitted by practitioners and patients to the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices National Medication Errors Reporting Program (ISMP
MERP). |
Tuesday, May 23
2:15 PM ET
Registration Information |
American College of Emergency Physicians |
Pediatric Readiness Quality Improvement Collaborative: A Value Proposition for Optimizing Pediatric Emergency Care Informational Webinar
This webinar provides a framework for understanding how participation in the PRQC can facilitate integration of evidence-based practice and bring value and equity to the emergency care of all children, and in all ED settings. |
Tuesday, May 23
3:00 - 4:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
NACCHO |
Sharing Session on Workforce Development
A panel of health directors will discuss some of the challenges that local health departments have been experiencing in employee retention and workforce burnout, and how the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these issues. This sharing session will provide both speakers and participants with an opportunity to share experiences and discuss ways to re-engage staff in their work, especially at the local level. |
Tuesday, May 23
3:00 - 4:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) |
ASTHO 2023 Public Health TechXpo and Futures Forum
The 2023 Public Health TechXpo and Futures Forum, presented by ASTHO in Chicago, is an annual convening of public health leaders and experts across the technology, professional services, financial, workforce, and related sectors. |
Tuesday, May 23 - Friday, May 25
Registration Information |
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) |
CISA's National Risk Management Center (NMRC)'s Virtual Industry Day 2023
CISA)s Office of the Chief Acquisition Executive (OCAE) will hold a NRMC Virtual Industry Day. CISA’s Industry Day Events will provide insight into CISA’s current and future challenges. These events will be an important tool to stimulate dialogue in cybersecurity and critical infrastructure-related topics impacting CISA. During this event, CISA will discuss the Divisions’ capabilities and will not discuss specific procurement actions or details. The NRMC is working with public and private stakeholders to identify, analyze, prioritize, and manage these risks to help advance the Nation’s collective defense. |
Wednesday, May 24
11:00 AM - 3:00 PM ET
Registration Information |
Emergency Response Research (EPA) |
Analysis for Coastal Operational Resiliency (AnCOR)-Wide Area Demonstration
This webinar will provide an overview of a recent field-scale demonstration of environmental remediation capabilities for outdoor urban areas following a wide-area biological incident. The Wide Area Demonstration (WAD) is part of a larger collaborative effort, the Analysis for Coastal Operational Resiliency (AnCOR), among the EPA DHS Science and Technology Directorate, and the U.S. Coast Guard |
Wednesday, May 24
2:00 - 3:30 PM ET
Registration Information |
NIH |
Unleashing the Power of Prevention to Enhance Well Being Across the Lifespan
This NIH “Unleashing the Power of Prevention to Enhance Well-Being Across the Lifespan” webinar will trace the evolution of prevention science and share the latest findings from longitudinal intervention studies based on the Social Development Strategy. Examples include Guiding Good Choices, a program for parents and caregivers to help them support positive development and the prevention of behavioral problems in their children, and Communities That Care, a prevention system. This webinar will also describe what is needed to increase the equitable reach and impact of effective health promotion and prevention approaches. |
Thursday, May 25
12:00 - 1:15 PM ET
Connection Information | |
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ASPR TRACIE Spotlight: The Express, May 2023 |
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HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra Statement on End of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE): |
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"Thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration's whole-of-government approach to combatting COVID-19, our country is in a better place than at any point during the pandemic.
We have learned many lessons during the last two and a half years and have worked to strengthen our preparedness and response efforts by creating resiliency in the domestic supply chain, building capacity to ensure adequate stockpiles, and fostering innovation through projects like Project NextGen.
HHS and the leadership across the Department remain focused on protecting the health and well-being of all Americans, particularly those at highest at risk, including seniors and immunocompromised people, making sure we don’t leave the uninsured behind and monitoring the latest subvariants so we're prepared and ready to manage the risks of the virus moving forward. The PHE is ending, but COVID-19 remains a public health priority, and our work to protect the American public will continue."
Read the full statement online. |
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National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center (NETEC): Addressing Staffing Challenges in Global High-Level Isolation Units |
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Recruiting and retaining health care workers amid unprecedented global staffing shortages is a top priority for health care institutions. It is especially important in HLIUs, where the readiness of a unit and its staff to respond to a special pathogen has serious consequences. These facilities are equipped with specialized engineering and administrative controls and run by highly trained teams to care for patients with high-consequence infectious diseases.
Identifying challenges and testing solutions for sustaining a health care workforce that is highly capable and highly trained in special pathogens prior to a real-world disease surge can help prevent system failure, protect health care workers, and enhance the safety of patients and the community.
Read the full article from NETEC. |
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Telehealth Flexibilities and Resources and the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency |
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As HHS continues the process of transitioning away from the policies enabled by the COVID-19 emergency declarations, the Department would like to provide clarity regarding the future of federal flexibilities related to telehealth and tele-prescribing to ensure that patients may continue to access and receive the care that they need.
Read a fact sheet from HHS with key details of what will change and what will stay the same for patients and providers now that the PHE has ended. |
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HHS emPOWER Provides New Data Features |
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HHS emPOWER now features five new combinations of data to help communities plan for disaster. The emergency planning dataset includes de-identified totals by type of electricity-dependent durable medical equipment (DME) and certain cardiac implantable devices, as well as four additional essential healthcare services. These include facility-based dialysis, home oxygen tank services, home health care services, and at-home hospice services. Public health authorities and their partners, as appropriate, can use this data to develop and enhance emergency systems, plans, and processes to support community-based at-risk populations, and to support data-driven decision-making regarding potential shelter and evacuation assistance needs, response
asset and resource allocation, and power restoration prioritization. To learn more about the emPOWER dataset, visit the HHS emPOWER Program - Emergency Response Outreach Dataset webpage.
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Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Distributes Additional Grant Funding for Programs that Combat Overdose and Substance Use on Multiple Fronts |
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SAMHSA is announcing awards in four grant programs devoted to combating the overdose epidemic on multiple fronts. The grant awards total nearly $11.3 million in additional funding to programs and support the President’s Unity Agenda focus on beating the nation’s opioid and overdose epidemic.
Read the full statement from SAMHSA.
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U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) Announces Effort to launch New Fire Information and Analytics Platform |
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The USFA announced the launch of the modernization effort to develop a new, interoperable fire information and analytics platform, known as the National Emergency Response Information System (NERIS), for the American fire and emergency services. The goal of NERIS is to empower the local fire and emergency service community by equipping them with near real-time information and analytic tools that support data informed decision making for enhanced preparedness and response to incidents involving all-hazards.
Read the full statement from the USFA. |
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HHS Celebrates National Maternal Mental Health Hotline's First Anniversary; Introduces Updated Number 1-833-TLC-MAMA |
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HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) celebrates the first anniversary of the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline. 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.
Additionally, HRSA is introducing an updated toll-free number for the Hotline: 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262). The former number (1-833-9-HELP-4-MOMS or 1-833-943-5746) will continue to work for another year.
Read the full statement from HHS. |
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Medicaid Unwinding and Returning to Regular Operations After COVID-19 |
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In 2020, certain Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) requirements were temporarily waived to help prevent people from losing their health care coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic. This policy ended on March 31, 2023.
The expiration of the continuous coverage requirement presents the single largest health coverage transition event since the first open enrollment period of the Affordable Care Act. Each state has their own process and timeline for asking people who are currently enrolled in Medicaid to demonstrate that they still qualify for Medicaid benefits. Some people will no longer qualify and may be able to buy a health plan through the Health Insurance Marketplace and get help paying for it.
Read the full statement from as well as additional resources from HRSA.
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U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Finalizes Recommendations for Assessing Blood Donor Eligibility |
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The FDA on May 11 finalized revised recommendations for assessing blood donor eligibility, which use the same risk-based questions for every donor regardless of sexual orientation, sex or gender. To reduce the likelihood of donations by individuals with new or recent HIV infection, the recommendations defer all prospective donors who report having a new sexual partner or more than one sexual partner and anal sex in the past three months; and those taking medications to treat or prevent HIV infection, the agency said.
Read the final guidance document from the FDA. |
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Additional Guidance, Reports, and Resources |
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CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) |
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CDC Mpox Guidance and Resources |
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We Want to Hear from You!
ASPR wants to hear how your organization and/or sub-recipients are making an impact in your communities. We will use your stories to demonstrate the importance of investing in emergency preparedness and response in some of our policy and budgetary documents.
Share your organization's experience in emergency preparedness, response, or recovery by answering a few questions on our Story From the Field Submission Form.
Our team will contact you for more information, as needed, and you may see your story published on the Health Care Readiness in Action: Stories from the Field webpage. Thank you in advance for sharing! |
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Note: ASPR provides the above sources of information for the convenience of the ASPR Health Care Readiness community and is not responsible for the availability or content of the information or tools provided, nor does ASPR endorse, warrant or guarantee the products, services or information described or offered. It is the responsibility of the user to determine the usefulness and applicability of the information provided. |
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