Rural Pediatric CME Conference
October 27, Mercer University Macon Campus

The Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center will host a free in-person Rural Pediatric CME Conference in the President’s Dining on Mercer University’s Macon campus on October 27, 9 am – 1:30 pm.

Topics include:

American Board of Pediatrics – New ways to maintain certification and the value of the portfolio site
Georgia Health Information Network – Capabilities of the information exchange and how to subscribe
Strong4Life – Building coping and resilience in children/preventative strategies for Behavioral Mental Health
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Pediatric Psychiatry – Screening and early diagnosis of behavioral mental health

CME credits are available through Mercer University School of Medicine, and CNE credits are available through Three Rivers AHEC.

Important COVID-19 Vaccine Updates

On September 11, 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration took action approving and authorizing for emergency use updated COVID-19 vaccines formulated to target currently circulating variants and to provide better protection against serious consequences of COVID-19, including hospitalization and death. These actions relate to updated mRNA vaccines for 2023-2024 manufactured by ModernaTX Inc. and Pfizer Inc., which have been updated to include a monovalent (single) component that corresponds to the Omicron variant XBB.1.5.

• Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine (2023-2024 Formula): individuals ages 6 months and older
• Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine (2023-2024 Formula): individuals ages 6 months and older

2023 GPCA Annual Conference
September 27-29, Savannah, GA

Are you ready to connect, engage, and empower yourself with the brightest minds in healthcare? The 2023 GPCA Annual Conference at Hyatt Regency Savannah is the perfect opportunity to do just that! Network with fellow GPCA members, community leaders, and sponsors while learning about the future of healthcare in Georgia. This is your chance to be a part of something bigger and better – to bring your ideas to the forefront and make a real difference in the industry. So don’t wait – register now and let’s celebrate the future of healthcare together! See you there!

Meeting the Health Needs of Georgia’s Students
Centene Foundation and GPCA Partnership

The Centene Foundation and Centene’s Georgia health plan, Peach State Health Plan, are investing over $1 million to enhance comprehensive school-based health centers (SBHC) at in-need schools in Georgia. Out of the approximately 2,200 public schools in the state, only a little over 100 have SBHCs. School nurses are unable to meet students’ needs and hundreds of schools don’t have a school nurse.

Former National Health Service Corps and Community Health Center Physician Executive Kyu Rhee, MD, MPP Named President and CEO of NACHC

The National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) announced on Wednesday that Kyu Rhee, MD, MPP has been named the new President and CEO. Rhee will lead the organization in advancing health equity and supporting the mission of Community Health Centers, which provide high-quality, affordable, transdisciplinary primary care services to more than 30 million people at over 14,000 sites across the nation. Rhee most recently served as SVP and Aetna CMO at CVS Health.

HHS Poverty Guidelines for 2023 Senate Appropriations Committee Advances Labor-HHS-Education FY 2024 Bill

On July 27, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed by a vote of 26-2 the Fiscal Year 2024 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education bill, which provides about 30% of health center funding. NACHC reported that the bill does NOT reduce health centers’ funding below the Fiscal Year 2023 level, despite an almost 6% cut to the bill’s overall spending level. While it is important to note that these funding levels are not final – they are the opening salvo in a negotiation with the House and eventually the President – it is encouraging that both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees agree about the need to preserve level funding for health centers.