Registration is now open for AMCHP's 2020 Annual Conference — the perfect opportunity to connect and network with nearly 1,000 public health officials who share an interest in maternal and child health. The theme for the conference—to be held March 21-24 in Crystal City, Va.—is The Power of Connections: Building Equity for Healthy Generations. Register by Feb. 21 to receive an early bird rate. For additional information, please contact Samantha Freeman. We look forward to seeing you!

New From AMCHP

Leadership Lab to Offer Three Leadership Development Trainings

AMCHP is excited to share that the Leadership Lab will be offering three leadership development trainings for the 2019-2020 programming year. These trainings are offered in place of the typical cohort structure and will be open to anyone interested in the designated topic for each training. AMCHP will offer these trainings in December 2019, February 2020, and April 2020. A save-the-date notice and registration link will be sent after topics, presenters, and specific dates are identified; please be alert for more information. If you have questions, contact Michelle Crawford at mcrawford@amchp.org

Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) During Pregnancy: Current Research, Practice Recommendations, and State Policy Considerations

Dec. 3, 2-3 p.m., ET
AMCHP and the Association of State Territorial Health Officials
The AMCHP-ASTHO Promoting Innovation in State MCH Policymaking "PRISM" project is hosting a webinar on the use of MAT among pregnant women in substance use disorder treatment. This webinar will highlight current research and treatment recommendations on the use of MAT among pregnant women, policy considerations, and opportunities for Title V programs to support MAT efforts in states. Register for the webinar here.

Legislation and Policy

House Passes Continuing Resolution, Senate Expected to Follow

On Nov. 19, the House passed a continuing resolution (CR) to extend federal funding for the Title V Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant, at fiscal year 2019 levels through Dec. 20, 2019. The Senate is expected to pass this legislation before the current CR runs out at midnight on Nov. 21. The President is expected to sign the stopgap funding legislation into law to avoid a government shutdown and give Congress an additional month to reach agreement on the 12 appropriations bills that fund the federal government. The one-month CR would also extend through Dec. 20 funding for several health programs whose authorization has expired, including community health centers, National Health Service Corps, special diabetes programs, and the personal responsibility education program, among others.

House Energy and Commerce Committee Considers Maternal Health, Youth Tobacco Control Bills

On Nov. 19, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce began considering two bills focused on improving maternal health and another bill to reduce youth tobacco use. As of this writing, the committee was expected to advance all three bipartisan bills, marking a critical step for this legislation to improve the health and well-being of MCH populations. Set out below are brief summaries of each bill; additional details are available in the committee memorandum for the hearing.

Maternal Health Quality Improvement Act of 2019 (H.R. 4995) – Led by Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Larry Bucshon (R-Ind.), this bill would authorize funding for several programs and activities. These include the Alliance for Maternal Health Innovation; training on implicit bias for maternal health care providers; perinatal quality collaboratives; integrated services for pregnant and postpartum women (pregnancy medical homes); rural obstetric networks; and rural maternal and obstetric care training.

Helping Medicaid Offer Maternity Services (MOMS) Act of 2019 (H.R. 4996) – Led by Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) and Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas), this bill would give states the option to extend the length of continuous postpartum eligibility for Medicaid to 12 months and provides a 5 percent increase to a state's federal medical assistance percentage for the first year a state adopts the option.

Reversing the Youth Tobacco Epidemic Act of 2019 (H.R. 2339) – Led by Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.) and Rep. Donna Shalala (D-Fla.), this bill would increase the minimum age to purchase tobacco products to 21 and prohibit all flavored tobacco products, including menthol, among other tobacco control provisions.

Get Involved

"Learn the Signs. Act Early." Ambassador Program Accepting Applications

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities and the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD), with support from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB), announce a limited funding opportunity for Act Early Ambassadors to work with CDC's "Learn the Signs. Act Early." (LTSAE) program to improve early identification of developmental delays and disabilities in a variety of ways. View the Request for Applications for a program overview, requirements and responsibilities, and important dates.
Note that applicants from Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, and West Virginia are eligible to apply for two available ambassadorships.
Contact Danielle Webber at dwebber@aucd.org or 202-525-9476 with additional questions.

Your Voice: Call for Volunteers for AMCHP Committees

AMCHP is still seeking volunteers for the following committees: Family and Youth Leadership, Legislative and Healthcare Financing, and Workforce and Leadership Development. Check out our committees page to learn more.

Register to Attend the 2020 Preparedness Summit in Dallas

Registration is now open for the 2020 Preparedness Summit, to be held March 31-April 3, 2020, in Dallas. The theme, Fixing Our Fault Lines: Addressing Systemic Vulnerabilities, will focus on methods to identify systemic weaknesses and highlight tools and policies that can empower all communities, and particularly the ones that are most vulnerable, to address those weaknesses and become more resilient.

Webinars

Applying the Latest Research to Prevent Bullying: Empowering Schools to Change Behaviors and Attitudes

Dec. 3, 2019, 2-4 p.m., ET
National Institute of Justice and The Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention
During this webinar, researchers will share information schools can use to address bullying. The webinar will provide teachers with techniques for responding to bullying in the classroom and give students who witness bullying the tools they need to address it. An education professional will moderate the webinar, and participants will have an opportunity to interact with presenters. Click here to register for this webinar.

Bright Futures and Oral Health: Strategies for Promoting Oral Health Within the Well-Child Visit

Dec. 11, 2019, 11 a.m.-12 p.m., CT (12-1 p.m., ET)
AMCHP is excited to host an upcoming webinar in partnership with the Bright Futures National Center and the Section on Oral Health at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). The webinar will provide attendees with important insights related to the promotion of oral health within the well-visit, and review strategies for overcoming common barriers. Presenters from AMCHP, the AAP's Section on Oral Health, and Bright Futures will highlight valuable resources that will assist states and communities in reaching their oral health promotion goals. Register for the webinar.

Addressing Food Insecurity with Adolescent Patients

Dec. 19, 2019, 1-2:00 p.m., ET
Food insecurity affects our adolescent patients but may often go unnoticed in health care settings. This interactive webinar addresses how providers and health care professionals can better understand the unique challenges faced by adolescents. It also examines the role health care professionals and providers play in helping connect patients to food and community nutrition resources. This webinar is sponsored by [or conducted] the Adolescent Health Initiative, the Regional Alliance for Healthy Schools, and Food Gatherers. Register by Dec. 17th to reserve your spot!

Publications & Resources

Adolescent Health

The Adolescent Health Initiative created its second Timely Topics module: "Addressing Adolescent Marijuana Use in Brief Clinical Encounters." This module invites participants to examine their values related to adolescent marijuana use, hear the latest opinions from youth on how they use, why they use, and how they want to communicate with providers on this topic. Subject matter expert Dr. Joanna Quigley shares highlights from the latest research, along with recommendations about screening, brief intervention, treatment options, and confidentiality with minors.

New American Academy of Pediatrics Policy Statement on What Doctors Need to Consider when Caring for 11- to 21-year-olds: Unique Needs of the Adolescent
Click the above link to review this policy statement that outlines the special health challenges that adolescents face on their journey and transition to adulthood. It provides recommendations for those who care for adolescents, their families, and the communities in which they live.

Adolescent Health: Think, Act, Grow® (TAG) content is now available on youth.gov. TAG is a national call to action to improve adolescent health in the United States. TAG calls upon organizations and individuals to prioritize activities that can support the health and healthy development of all of America's 42 million adolescents. TAG offers concrete roles and responsibilities for stakeholders who have direct contact with adolescents and influence among them, including professionals from out-of-school and community-based, faith-based, education, health care, public health, social service, and workforce development settings. TAG also provides parents/families and adolescents with resources and ideas for action to support teen health, prevent problems, and locate services. Find more at youth.gov/TAG.

On Your Behalf

Several AMCHP staff presented at the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) Conference in Washington, DC:

Paige Bussanich moderated a panel on "Increasing Access to Autism Spectrum Disorder/Developmental Disabilities Diagnosis and Intervention Among Medically Underserved Populations: Lessons Learned from Family Navigation, Tele-health/Education, and Shared Resources." The panel focused on reflections from former autism state implementation grantees from Delaware, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin on their work toward a coordinated, comprehensive state system that leads to early diagnosis and entry into services for children with ASD/DD.
Anna Corona moderated a panel on "Exploring the Role of University Centers of Excellence in Developmental Disabilities as Partners in Localized Community Equity Initiatives." The panelists shared their experiences, challenges, and suggestions for partnering locally to advance equity for children with disabilities.
Maura Leahy presented a poster on "A Legacy Product: AMCHP's Learn the Signs. Act Early. State Systems Grant: Eight Years in Review." She provided an overview of a larger interactive resource available on the AMCHP website that includes information about partnerships built through the Learn the Signs. Act Early. state systems grant and state case studies designed around three main areas of impact.

Funding

Call for Applications: Apply for Data Across Sectors for Health (DASH) Community Impact Contracts (CIC)-Strategic, Timely, Actionable, Replicable, Targeted (START) Round 5

Local collaborations are invited to submit applications for a funding program that supports activities that build capacity to share and use multi-sector data to improve community health, equity, and lasting systems change. If your community has identified an opportunity to advance your data sharing efforts that is strategic, timely, actionable, replicable, and targeted, this program is for you! Up to 15 CIC-START contracts are available. Review the call for applications to see if your community is a good fit. Apply for DASH CIC-START programs here. Application deadline is Dec. 6, 2019. Informational webinar is on Nov. 22, 3-4 p.m. Register here to attend the webinar.

Primary Care Training and Enhancement: Residency Training in Primary Care (PCTE-RTPC) Program

The Health Resources and Services Administration
Deadline: Jan. 24, 2020
To enhance accredited residency training programs in family medicine, general internal medicine, general pediatrics, or combined internal medicine and pediatrics in rural and/or underserved areas, and encourage program graduates to choose primary care careers in these areas.

Commemorations

November
National Epilepsy Awareness Month
National Family Caregivers Month
Prematurity Awareness Month
National Homeless Youth Awareness Month

Calendar

AMCHP 2020 Annual Conference
March 21-24
Crystal City, Va.

2020 Preparedness Summit in Dallas
March 31-April 3
Dallas, Tx.