Rural Reporter
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Report: Wisconsin Municipalities Depend Most on Property Taxes
Cities and villages in Wisconsin rely more heavily on property taxes than any other state in the Midwest, and to a greater degree than most states nationally, according to a new report by the nonpartisan, independent Wisconsin Policy Forum.
The report, “Dollars and Sense: Is it time for a new municipal financing framework in Wisconsin?” finds that in a region of twelve Midwestern states, Wisconsin is the only state in which municipalities generally are authorized to levy only the property tax, and is the only state in which property taxes represent the largest share of municipal revenue. Read the full report here, executive summary here, or view the interactive data here. (Source and Image: Wisconsin Policy Forum) -
New Report Examines Medicaid Expansion Across States
A new study that compares private sector health insurance costs and emergency room visits in states that expanded Medicaid eligibility and those that did not concludes that Medicaid expansion in Wisconsin would cost taxpayers an annual $600 million, increase private healthcare costs as providers seek to make up for low Medicaid rates, and see an increase in emergency room visits.
The study, titled The Impact of Medicaid Expansion: Examining the cost to consumers and the net impact on Wisconsin, comes from the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty and the Center for Research on the Wisconsin Economy (CROWE) at the University of Wisconsin. Evers has said he plans to include Medicaid expansion in his budget proposal, which will be announced at the end of this month.
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Do Hospital Closures Affect Patient Time in an Ambulance?
When a hospital closes in a community, patients needing emergency care may spend more time in an ambulance to receive care in an emergency department. A study at the University of Kentucky examined how a hospital closure affects patient transport time in both rural and urban areas.
The study found that for rural calls, the mean transport time prior to a hospital closure was about 14 minutes, and increased to about 25 minutes after a hospital closed. In urban areas, the report found there was no change in transport times after a hospital had closed. (Source and Image: University of Kentucky's Rural and Underserved Health Research Center; Image describes hospital closures, with rural closures shown as diamonds) -
The Sustainability of Rural Hospitals
A new report from Navigant, a management consulting company based in Chicago, finds that hospitals across the nation are at high financial risk of closing unless their financial situations improve. Thirty four states have what the report considers five or more rural hospitals at high financial risk, including Wisconsin. Several factors cited for the problem include a 'degradation' of the payer mix, declining inpatient care, and inability to leverage innovation.
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State Lawmakers Propose Tax Break For Caregivers
A bipartisan group of state lawmakers is introducing a plan that would give family members a tax break to offset the out-of-pocket costs of caregiving. The tax credit would cover various expenses, including home improvements needed for mobility or safety, legal or financial services or a personal-care attendant, reports Wisconsin Public Radio. Governor Tony Evers also announced this week that he has commissioned a task force to examine the issue. (Photo: skeeze, Pixabay)
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American Medical Association Community Health Grant (Deadline: 03/08/2019)The American Medical Association Foundation Community Health Grants support evidence-based projects that demonstrate focused, measurable results in community health and medical education programs. Grant funding will support community-based organizations, such as free health clinics, that provide services for vulnerable and underserved populations, especially services that target the prevention and reduction of type 2 diabetes and hypertension. Eligible applicants are community based organizations, including free clinics, that meet certain criteria. There were two applicant webinars: January 22nd at 11 am Central, and February 12th at 12pm Central. Funding »
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Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Interdisciplinary Research Leaders Program (Deadline: 03/13/2019)The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Change Leadership Programs are designed to extend the influence and impact of leaders working to build a Culture of Health, a national framework designed to ensure that people are supported to live the healthiest lives possible where they live, learn, work, and play. Interdisciplinary Research Leaders Program supports teams of researchers with advanced leadership skills in applying health research and policy to meet the pressing needs of communities. The themes for 2019 scholars are: Community development and health Clinical practice, social services, and health Funding »
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Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program (Deadline: 03/13/2019)The Clinical Scholars Program prepares and supports small teams of clinicians from a range of disciplines to lead transformative change in their communities, with a focus on health equity. There was an applicant webinar on January 28th at 12 pm Central. Funding »
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Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples Grants (Deadline: 03/01/2019)Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples grants provide funding to native community-based projects. Grant awards range from $250 to $50,000. An organization may apply for a single large grant per year. Eligible applicants are: Organizations with a 501(c)(3) nonprofit status A Native American/Indigenous peoples’ initiative or project that accomplishes its work within the community it serves At least 80% of the board of directors and leadership are Indigenous peoples An Indigenous Executive Director Seventh Generation Fund is an Indigenous identity-based organization dedicated to the self-determination of Native Peoples and the sovereignty of our distinct Nations that mobilizes financial, technical, and informational resources directly to Native communities to empower action. Send your complete proposal package to: Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples Attn: Proposal Review Committee PO Box 4569 Arcata, CA 955518 USA Or by email to: grants@7genfund.org (Indicate “Proposal” in the subject line) Funding »
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Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples Grants (Deadline: 06/07/2019)Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples grants provide funding to native community-based projects. Grant awards range from $250 to $50,000. An organization may apply for a single large grant per year. Eligible applicants are: Organizations with a 501(c)(3) nonprofit status A Native American/Indigenous peoples’ initiative or project that accomplishes its work within the community it serves At least 80% of the board of directors and leadership are Indigenous peoples An Indigenous Executive Director Seventh Generation Fund is an Indigenous identity-based organization dedicated to the self-determination of Native Peoples and the sovereignty of our distinct Nations that mobilizes financial, technical, and informational resources directly to Native communities to empower action. Send your complete proposal package to: Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples Attn: Proposal Review Committee PO Box 4569 Arcata, CA 955518 USA Or by email to: grants@7genfund.org (Indicate “Proposal” in the subject line) Funding »
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Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples Grants (Deadline: 10/11/2019)Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples grants provide funding to native community-based projects. Grant awards range from $250 to $50,000. An organization may apply for a single large grant per year. Eligible applicants are: Organizations with a 501(c)(3) nonprofit status A Native American/Indigenous peoples’ initiative or project that accomplishes its work within the community it serves At least 80% of the board of directors and leadership are Indigenous peoples An Indigenous Executive Director Seventh Generation Fund is an Indigenous identity-based organization dedicated to the self-determination of Native Peoples and the sovereignty of our distinct Nations that mobilizes financial, technical, and informational resources directly to Native communities to empower action. Send your complete proposal package to: Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples Attn: Proposal Review Committee PO Box 4569 Arcata, CA 955518 USA Or by email to: grants@7genfund.org (Indicate “Proposal” in the subject line) Funding »
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HRSA Funding for New Access Points (Deadline: 03/12/2019)This notice announces the opportunity to apply for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 New Access Points (NAP) funding under the Health Center Program. The purpose of this funding is to provide operational support for new service delivery sites to improve the health of the nation’s underserved communities and vulnerable populations by expanding access to affordable, accessible, quality, and cost effective primary health care services. Your organization must be a domestic public or private, nonprofit entity, as demonstrated in Attachment 11: Evidence of Nonprofit or Public Center Status. Tribes, tribal organizations, faith-based organizations, and community-based organizations are eligible to apply. Funding »
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Wisconsin Zero Suicide Training (Deadline: 03/15/2019)Mental Health America of Wisconsin is inviting applications from eligible entities to participate in Wisconsin Zero Suicide Training. Zero Suicide is a quality improvement initiative that includes both a cultural shift in addressing suicide prevention within organizations and a set of best practices. The 2019 training will be held in Eau Claire, Wisconsin on June 20-21. Applications are due by March 15th, 2019. Funding »
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National Indian Health Board Health Policy Fellowships (Deadline: 03/30/2019)Native youth, ages 18-24, who are members of a federally-recognized tribe may be eligible to apply for a one-year fellowship to explore Indian health policy, healthcare, and governance. From June 2019 through May 2020, the fellows will attend virtual trainings and three in-person meetings to learn advocacy skills. The fellowship pays for travel and hotel costs to attend in-person meetings and provides opportunities for professional development, leadership, and skills building. Funding »
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Rural Health and Economic Development Analysis (Deadline: 03/27/2019)The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), through the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy, seeks to fund one applicant to quantify the impact of rural health care. The funded organization will conduct analyses of the link between the health of the economy in rural communities and the health outcomes of residents, disseminate findings, and assist rural stakeholders in performing these analyses. The award is offered for up to $225,000 per year for three years. Eligible applicants include domestic public, private, and nonprofit organizations. Funding »
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Increasing Access to HIV Primary Health Care Services (Deadline: 03/22/2019)Rural communities may request funding preference for this $4 million investment through HRSA’s Ryan White/HIV AIDS Program. Twenty-six awards will go to public and non-profit private entities, including faith-based and community-based organizations. Tribes and tribal organizations are also eligible to apply. Funding is intended to support one short-term activity that can be completed within the one-year period of performance. Supported activities include care efforts such as HIV case finding and treatment adherence, and infrastructure development such as for electronic health records and management information systems. Funding »
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Rural Health and Economic Development Analysis (HRSA) (Deadline: 03/27/2019)Eligible applicants include domestic public or private, non-profit and for-profit entities. Domestic faith-based and community-based organizations, tribes, and tribal organizations are eligible to apply. Eligible entities may include, but are not limited to, public and private institutions for higher education, public or private health research organizations, and foundations. The purpose of this Program is to increase public and stakeholder awareness of the economic impacts of rural health care sectors on rural, state, and national economies as well as the relationship between community economic development1 and the health outcomes of rural residents. Additionally, it seeks to quantify the impact of rural health care, conduct analyses of the link between the health of the economy in a rural community and the health outcomes of the residents of those communities, and assist rural stakeholders in performing these analyses. The program will disseminate findings on the economic impact of health services in rural communities for rural stakeholders. HRSA will work closely with the award recipient on areas of concern such as the impact of hospital closures on local economies, the benefits of different types of health care providers on care and sustainability of services, use of telehealth, new models for provision of services, and impact of bypass of local rural services and other emerging issues. Funding »
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National Health Service Corps Substance Use Disorder Workforce Loan Repayment Program (Deadline: 02/21/2019)The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) provides loan repayment assistance for substance use disorder (SUD) clinicians who agree to serve in Health Professional Shortage Areas. The primary purpose of the dedicated funding is to expand the scope of SUD treatment providers and sites. Links to the application instructions and the online application process are available on the program website. There will be an applicant webinar on January 10th, 2019 at 1:30 pm Central. Call-in number: 888.950.7563 Participant code: 3172361 Funding »
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ALDI Smart Kids Program (Deadline: 02/28/2019)The ALDI Smart Kids Program partners with organizations that make a positive impact on kids’ health and wellness by providing funding and gift cards to organizations that promote kids being active and healthy. Requests for funding should be between $100–$5,000 and are limited to communities where ALDIs has a presence. Applications accepted throughout the year except January.
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Christopher D. Smithers Foundation (Deadline: 02/28/2019)The Christopher D. Smithers Foundation accepts proposals on an ongoing basis that focus on prevention, treatment, and education about alcohol use disorder and other substance use disorders, including opioids. Funding »
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Leveraging Health Information Technology (Health IT) to Address Minority Health and Health Displarities (Deadline: 03/04/2019)This program provides funding for research that examines how health information technology adoption impacts minority health and health disparity populations in access to care, quality of care, patient engagement, and health outcomes. Projects should include a focus on one or more NIH-designated health disparity populations, including those in underserved rural populations. Eligible applicants include higher education institutions, nonprofit organizations, governments, independent school districts, and housing authorities. An optional letter of intent was due on February 4th, 2019. Funding »
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Advanced Nursing Education: Nurse Practitioner Residency (Deadline: 03/04/2019)The Advanced Nursing Education: Nurse Practitioner Residency Program (Short Title: ANE-NPR) provides grants to prepare new nurse practitioners (NPs) in primary care for practice in community-based settings through clinical and academic focused 12-month Nurse Practitioner Residency (NPR) programs, with a preference for those projects that benefit rural or underserved populations. Eligible applicants include schools of nursing, nurse managed health clinics/centers, academic health centers, state and local governments, other appropriate private or public nonprofit entities, and consortia of public or private nonprofit entities that confer degrees, or provide practice support to RNs for NP education in primary care. Application instructions are available here. Funding »
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Rural Residency Planning and Development Program (Deadline: 03/25/2019)The Rural Residency Planning and Development Program provides grants to develop new rural residency programs or Rural Training Tracks (RTT) in family medicine, internal medicine, and psychiatry to support expansion of the physician workforce in rural areas. The program's objectives are to develop a newly accredited, rural family medicine, internal medicine, or psychiatry residency program or RTT based in a rural area that is sustainable after the period of performance ends; have a sustainability plan that includes ongoing funding to sustain resident training once the program has been established; and have the ability and a structured plan to track residents’ career outcomes after graduation to determine retention in rural communities. Eligibility includes: rural hospitals, rural community-based ambulatory patient care centers including Federally Qualified Health Centers, community mental health centers, and Rural Health Clinics, health centers operated by the Indian Health service, an Indian tribe or tribal organization, or an urban Indian organization, shools of allopathic and osteopathic medicine, public and private nonprofit graduate medical education consortia, and entities such as faith-based and community-based organizations, capable of carrying out the project activities. The deadline for this award has been extended to March 25th. The original deadline was March 4th. Funding »
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National Rural Health Policy, Community, and Collaboration Program (Deadline: 02/28/2019)The purpose of this program is to identify, engage, educate, and collaborate with rural stakeholders on national rural health policy issues and promising practices in an effort to improve the health of people living in rural communities nationwide. Program objectives include: (1) Identifying and educating rural stakeholders about national policy issues and promising practices for rural health. (2) Maintaining projects that will help support engagement of rural communities in a broad range of activities. (3) Facilitating partnerships and collaborations at the local, regional, state, and national levels to improve the exchange of information and promising practices that support rural health. (4) Identifying and promoting broader collaborative federal efforts to support, promote, and address unique rural health issues. A successful program will continue to build upon the federally funded resources that currently exist, leverage the broad network of rural health organizations and individual subject matter experts, and provide a mechanism for the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) to engage with public rural health stakeholders beyond Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) funded award recipients and current partners to add value, information, and support to rural communities. Eligible applicants include domestic public, private and nonprofit organizations including domestic faith-based and community organizations, state governments and their agencies such as universities, colleges, research institutions, hospitals, local governments or their bona fide agents, federally recognized tribal governments, tribes, and tribal organizations are also eligible. Funding »
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Rural Health Innovation and Transformation Technical Assistance (Deadline: 02/22/2019)The purpose of this program is to provide technical assistance (TA) to rural stakeholders and the public to help them understand and engage in the value-based care landscape in the context of rural health care. Because of the unique economic factors affecting rural providers, the implementation and effects of value-based care initiatives may look different in rural, low-volume settings. For example, low patient volumes, along with low margins, in rural settings can make it more difficult to absorb the financial risks associated with value-based care. A major goal of this funding opportunity is to support the ability of rural providers to participate and succeed in current and emerging payment and delivery system models designed to provide value-based care. This funding opportunity seeks to provide a mechanism for the federal government to work collaboratively with rural health care stakeholders on TA to achieve several goals. Funding »