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Rural Health Information Hub
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
News by Topic: Populations

Apr 23, 2024 - Announces $700 million in funding for tribal communities for water and sewage infrastructure as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Also announces a partnership between the Bureau of Reclamation and the Indian Health Service (IHS) as well as a partnership between the United States Public Health Services (USPHS) Commissioned Corps and IHS. The partnerships will address barriers in access to resources as well as public health workforce needs.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Apr 22, 2024 - Announces an expanded partnership between the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of Defense (DOD), increasing access to healthcare for New York area veterans. Discusses the impact the expanded access will have on rural veterans.
Source: Department of Veterans Affairs
Apr 19, 2024 - Summarizes a recent Arizona meeting addressing higher suicide rates in Native American communities. Notes the impact that long travel distances for reservation residents can negatively impact mental health. Discusses the role of historical trauma in disparate rates.
Source: Cronkite News
Apr 19, 2024 - Notice from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) extending the comment period on the December 29, 2023, interim final rule titled "Establishing the Summer EBT Program and Rural Non-Congregate Option in the Summer Meal Programs." The interim final rule amends the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) and the National School Lunch Program's Seamless Summer Option (SSO) regulations to codify the flexibility for rural program operators to provide non-congregate meal service in the SFSP and SSO. This rule also establishes regulations and codifies a permanent summer electronic benefits transfer for children program (Summer EBT) to ensure continued access to food when school is not in session for the summer. Comments are now due by August 27, 2024.
Source: Federal Register
Apr 19, 2024 - The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Minority Health (OMH) is seeking comments from language access stakeholders, including organizations representing and/or serving communities with limited English proficiency (LEP), to inform the development and implementation of a universal symbol informing people about the availability of language assistance services in healthcare settings. Comments are due by May 20, 2024.
Source: Federal Register
Apr 19, 2024 - The National Advisory Council on Migrant Health (NACMH) will hold a virtual public meeting on May 15-16, 2024. Agenda items include discussions on topics related to migratory and seasonal agricultural worker health. Meeting information will be published on the NACMH website. Requests for public comment should be sent to the Designated Federal Official at least 3 business days before the meeting.
Source: Federal Register
Apr 19, 2024 - The National Council on Disability will hold a virtual quarterly business meeting on May 9, 2024, from 1:00-5:00 p.m. Eastern. Agenda items include reports from the Executive Committee and Chair, policy updates, policy proposals for fiscal year 2025, a presentation by the Intertribal Disability Advisory Council (IDAC) on living with a disability on tribal lands, a public comment session focused on public facilities and public transportation, and Council Member training on National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) requirements. Registration is required.
Source: Federal Register
Apr 19, 2024 - The Rural Housing Service (RHS) is accepting pre-applications for Section 514 Off-Farm Labor Housing (Off-FLH) loans and Section 516 Off-FLH grants for the construction of new off-farm FLH units for domestic farm laborers, retired domestic farm laborers, or disabled domestic farm laborers. This program aims to increase the supply of affordable housing for farm laborers. Pre-applications will be accepted until July 3, 2024.
Source: Federal Register
Related funding: Off-Farm Labor Housing Direct Loans and Grants
Apr 18, 2024 - Describes a program for rural underserved high school students in Tennessee interested in healthcare careers, aiming to recruit students into the healthcare field. The program offers hands-on experience with the medical field.
Source: ETSU News
Apr 18, 2024 - Notice of final rule from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) revising regulations governing the WIC food packages. The revisions align the WIC food package regulations with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans and reflect recommendations made by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) in its 2017 report, "Review of WIC Food Packages: Improving Balance and Choice" while promoting nutrition security and equity. Among other things, this rule intends to provide WIC participants with a wider variety of foods that align with the latest nutritional science; provide WIC State agencies with greater flexibility to prescribe and tailor food packages that accommodate participants' special dietary needs and personal and cultural food preferences; provide foods in amounts that are more consistent with the supplemental nature of the Program; and strengthen support for individual breastfeeding goals to help establish successful long-term breastfeeding. This rule is effective June 17, 2024.
Source: Federal Register