Resource Search Results

21st Century CURES Act and Information blocking - How to Avoid Blocking Interoperable EHI.: HITEQ Highlights Webinar (2021). Resource Type: Archived Webinar. Description: In this webinar, the HITEQ Center discusses the 21st Century CURES act (CURES act), specifically focused on how it defined interoperability and information blocking and how that relates to health centers. With HHS recently extending the provider compliance date to April 5, 2021, we review how ONC’s final rules defined information blocking requirements and exceptions. We discuss common scenarios and health center policy practices that might be considered information blocking, and how they can reduce health center risks with early planning and policy definitions. More Details...

Data Integration Best Practices for Health Centers & Homeless Services Publication: Health Center Focus Group Recommendations on Data Integration (2020). Resource Type: Publication. Description: Health centers use data and technology to improve health outcomes of patients, speed administrative processes, and collect patients’ health and housing histories. This report advances strategies for large and small health centers to match data with homeless service systems to identify and coordinate care for high utilizers of crisis care systems. More Details...

Culturally Competent Care: Learning Collaborative (2020). Resource Type: Other. Description: This is a learning collaborative series of 4 sessions where Health Center staff learned about standards for providing culturally and linguistically appropriate services (CLAS) to their patients. Slides and recordings for all sessions are available here as well as resources to facilitate the implementation of CLAS in health center settings. More Details...

Addressing Intimate Partner Violence and Human Trafficking in the Health Center Setting: HITEQ Highlights Webinar (2020). Resource Type: Archived Webinar. Description: The coronavirus pandemic and consequent stay-at-home orders may increase danger for those at risk for or experiencing intimate partner violence and human trafficking (IPV/HT). Due to COVID-19, many health centers have shifted health encounters to virtual platforms, which offer unique opportunities to provide trauma-informed care and connect in new ways with those who may be experiencing abuse. Yet, telehealth and virtual visits also present health centers with new challenges related to privacy, safety and digital health equity. More Details...

Telehealth.HHS.gov website (2020). Resource Type: Other. Description: The Telehealth.HHS.gov website provides information about the latest federal efforts to support and promote telehealth services. It was built by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). More Details...

PrEP and Informatics (2020). Resource Type: Archived Webinar. Description: In this webinar experts from Fenway Health and HITEQ discuss using data, electronic health records, and informatics to make informed decisions regarding PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) for HIV prevention. The webinar covers both clinical data usage and administrative staff support in using data and informatics for optimizing PrEP in health centers. More Details...

Developing Cross-Sector Partnerships (2020). Resource Type: Publication. Description: This guide provides health center staff with tools and strategies to initiate, develop, and sustain community partnerships to better serve older adult residents of public housing. Content of this publication was developed through a 4-session learning collaborative launched by the SDOH academy with a small cohort of HRSA-funded health centers, HCCNs, and PCAs. More Details...

Communications & Outreach Toolkit — COVID-19: Resources & Templates to help Health Centers Communicate information about services and programs during the Coronavirus Outbreak (2020). Resource Type: Toolkit. Description: Resources and templates Health Centers and PCAs can use to communicate information about services and programs to a variety of audiences, including the media, patients, prospective patients, community partners, during the Coronavirus outbreak. Resources include templates and documents like fact sheets, flyers, media relations templates, video animations, and more. More Details...

Patient Confidentiality & COVID-19 (2020). Resource Type: Archived Webinar. Description: In this complimentary webinar, we will review the permitted uses and disclosures of patient information during emergencies under both HIPAA and Part 2 and discuss the most recent updates from OCR and SAMHSA. We will also provide responses to health center’s most frequently asked questions and suggest best practices to ensure on-going compliance during this challenging period. More Details...

Strategic Cybersecurity Breach Protection and Incident Response: Guidance and Resources for Health Centers (2019). Resource Type: Other. Description: This is Part 2 of HITEQ's Health Center Defense Against the Dark Web presentation series. This presentation provides general knowledge about breach mitigation and planning strategies for incident response. More Details...

Health Center Defense Against the Dark Web Presentation: Strategies for Building Security Awareness, Education and Compliance (2019). Resource Type: Other. Description: This cybersecurity presentation explores key concepts and best practices that should be followed by Health Centers seeking to develop Defense in Depth and effectively implement hardened security programs at their sites. Part 1 of this series will seek to motivate and educate the health center workforce on critical privacy and security concepts and methods for defense. Aspects of Security Risk Assessment, security awareness training, and breach protection will be covered with an emphasis on health center-wide information protection. More Details...

Policy Options for Improving Dental Coverage for People on Medicare (2019). Resource Type: Publication. Description: The Kaiser Family Foundation just released an “Issue Brief” which identifies several potential approaches for improving dental coverage for Medicare beneficiaries. Included in the options are OPEN’s recommendation to include an extensive dental benefit under Medicare Part B. Also included in the Issue Brief is the work OPEN has been doing to get federal policymakers to expand the types of “medically necessary” dental services that are covered. More Details...

Ransomware Guidance Presentation for Health Centers: Updated with Ransomware Strategies from CISA (2019). Resource Type: Publication. Description: This ransomware guidance presentation for health centers, updated with ransomware strategies from CISA, provides information about ransomware, HIPPA implications, recent examples from the news, and suggested resources. More Details...

Center of Excellence for Protected Health Information: FOCUS: PHI is a SAMHSA-funded source for clear and accurate information about patient privacy and confidentiality (2019). Resource Type: Other. Description: Clear and accurate information about confidentiality is important to ensure that patient privacy is protected and that privacy laws are not erroneously interpreted to prevent disclosure of patient information. Individuals living with mental illness or substance use disorders may not seek care without guarantees of confidentiality and privacy protections. Clarifying privacy protections and promoting communication of patient records is critical for improving patients’ access to care and quality of treatment once in care. The Center for Excellence for Protected Health information is supported by SAMHSA and includes key resources around privacy and confidentiality. More Details...

Compliance with 42 CFR Part 2: A Case Study with Community Medical Centers, Inc. (2019). Resource Type: Publication. Description: Health centers are actively expanding the substance use treatment services they offer in the community to address access to care for opioid use disorders, and more broadly to address better screening, referral and timely access to all substance use disorder (SUD) treatment. This case study is an example of how a health center is assessing operations to comply with 42 CFR Part 2, with a particular focus on changes to their health information technology (IT) systems. It includes a 42 CFR Part 2 Regulatory Checklist that health centers may find particularly helpful to review. More Details...

Creating and Managing Strong Passwords at Your Health Center: Guidance in relation to updated NIST security requirements and HIPAA (2018). Resource Type: Publication. Description: Is it acceptable/recommended for health centers to adopt the new password policy guidelines under NIST Special Publication 800-63B and will that still uphold the HIPAA security rule? This question had been posed to the HITEQ Center asking whether we had any guidance or recommendations on implementing the new NIST Guidelines regarding password security.  New Digital Identity Guidelines under NIST Special Publication 800-63-B presents new guidelines regarding password security that are much more user-friendly and consequently more likely to be observed by health center staff since constantly changing, complex password on multiple systems can be a source of frustration for the end user.  Question: Is it acceptable/recommended for health centers to adopt the new password policy guidelines under NIST Special Publication 800-63B and will that still uphold the HIPAA security rule? This question had been posed to the HITEQ Center asking whether we had any guidance or recommendations on implementing the new NIST Guidelines regarding password security.  New Digital Identity Guidelines under NIST Special Publication 800-63-B presents new guidelines regarding password security that are much more user-friendly and consequently more likely to be observed by health center staff since constantly changing, complex password on multiple systems can be a source of frustration for the end user.  After consulting with HITEQ cybersecurity experts and consultants who have helped publish cybersecurity guidelines, the recommendations outlined below were communicated. Answer: The short answer is Yes. HIPAA is not prescriptive and takes the general stance that authentication mechanisms should be “reasonable and appropriate” for the risk they present. Being able to say that you are implementing NIST Standards is a good way to show that you are implementing “reasonable and appropriate” controls. Some standards are relaxed in regards to password change and complexity, those items shouldn’t be taken in isolation. The additional controls in the 800-63 recommendations should also be put in place and can include: Having users check passwords against password lists from breaches e.g., https://haveibeenpwned.com/Passwords  Increasing the length requirements Getting rid of password reminder questions Increasing usability Further Guidance from NCCIC/US-CERT: NCCIC/US-CERT reminds users of the importance of creating and managing strong passwords. Passwords are often the only barrier between you and your personal information. There are several programs attackers can use to help guess or "crack" passwords. However, choosing strong passwords and keeping them confidential can make it more difficult for others to access your information. NCCIC/US-CERT recommends users take the following actions: Use multi-factor authentication when available. Use different passwords on different systems and accounts. Don't use passwords that are based on personal information that can be easily accessed or guessed. Use the longest password or passphrase permissible by each password system. Don't use words that can be found in any dictionary of any language. Refer to Tips on Choosing and Protecting Passwords and Supplementing Passwords for best practices and additional information. More Details...

The Health Center CIO’s Guide to HIPAA Compliant Text Messaging: 2018 Updates on Methods for Successful Electronic Patient Engagement (2018). Resource Type: Publication. Description: This slide deck provides health centers with information and a presentation template overview of the HIPAA and electronic PHI risks related to texting and messaging that are important for health center leadership and IT managers to understand in making organizational decisions for these types of tools. This slide deck provides health centers with information and a presentation template overview of the HIPAA and electronic PHI risks related to texting and messaging that are important for health center leadership and IT managers to understand in making organizational decisions for these types of tools.   Key considerations covered within this slide deck: Important to understand new changes to enforcement of HIPAA as it relates to portable devices, texting, and emailing of PHI. HIPAA privacy and security rules need not act as an obstacle to texting, but compliance requires planning and diligence. All forms of communication involve some level of risk. Text messaging merely represents a different set of risks that, like other communication technologies, needs to be managed appropriately to ensure both privacy and security of the information exchanged. More Details...

Payment Innovation and Health Center Dental Programs: Case Studies from Three States (2018). Resource Type: Publication. Description: As dental care reimbursement follows the trends of healthcare overall towards value-based payment reimbursement, lessons from pioneers in dental payment innovation will inform effective health center strategies that will both strengthen the dental safety network and improve the oral health of the communities they serve. This document outlines interviews from organizations in three states on how health center dental programs are adapting clinical care systems under payment innovation incentives. More Details...

Collecting Data On Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, And Pacific Islanders For Community Health Center Needs Assessments: A Learning Series - Part 1: Social Determinants of Health of Emerging Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islander (AA&NHPI) Populations by States (2017). Resource Type: Archived Webinar. Description: This webinar provides a data portrait of the fastest growing AA&NHPI populations by state with profiles of their social determinants of health characteristics. The five states are Arizona, Arkansas, Nevada, North Carolina, and North Dakota. The seven SDOH characteristics mentioned are educational attainment, foreign born, language spoken at home and ability to speak English, employment status, health insurance coverage, poverty level, and household characteristics. Collecting and having disaggregated data is important to better understand the unique barriers faced by AA&NHPIs since they represent more than 50 ethnic groups and over 100 languages. Health centers can use this data to develop more culturally and linguistically appropriate programs to better serve these communities. More Details...

42 CFR Part 2 Final Rule and Health Center Compliance: A HITEQ Webinar in collaboration with the California Primary Care Association (CPCA) (2017). Resource Type: Publication. Description: This presentation explored the history and recent changes of 42 CFR Part 2, review common definitions, and how the changes may affect integrated medication-assisted treatment (MAT) and Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) programs, and discussion on LifeLong Medical Care’s experience. More Details...