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INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE OF CHICAGO

  • 20 Jan 2025 2:48 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

       National Day of Service  & Martin Luther King Jr. Day 

  • 17 Jan 2025 2:29 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration published updated crisis care guidance for 2025, designed to reflect the transition to the 988 Lifeline. {SAMHSA & Becker's]

    In a Jan. 15 news release, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said the guidance is designed to help communities "continue to develop and enhance their behavioral health crisis services." 

    "Everyone in this country, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to crisis care for mental health and substance use issues," Mr. Becerra said. 

    Here are five changes to note: 

    1. The agency updated three components of the behavioral health crisis system for 2025. The essential components include 988 and other behavioral health lines, mobile crisis and outreach services and emergency and crisis stabilization services. 

    2. The 2025 guidelines outline a general approach rather than providing a universal toolkit for every organization. 

    3. The new guidelines place more emphasis on follow-up services, care coordination and critical service interventions. 
    4. The updated guidance also emphasizes support for whole-person and family system care.

    5. SAMHSA also published an implementation toolkit for mobile crisis team services. Public comments on the guidance are being accepted through March 21. 

    Read the full guidance here. 

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  • 16 Jan 2025 6:02 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    Rule would ease access to gold-standard opioid use disorder treatments by allowing those treatments to be prescribed via telehealth

    The Biden administration Wednesday finalized a long-awaited rule laying out how some health care providers can prescribe gold-standard opioid use disorder treatments through telehealth. [CQ Roll Call]

    The final rule from the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration within the Department of Health and Human Services allows providers who have not had an in-person visit with a patient to prescribe six months’ worth of buprenorphine through telehealth, including through audio-only visits.

    Afterward, to continue prescribing buprenorphine through telehealth, providers can conduct an in-person medical evaluation or continue treating the patient “via another form of telemedicine.”

    More> 

  • 15 Jan 2025 12:48 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    The percentage of US youths experiencing mental health and substance use problems has risen rapidly in recent years.1-3 Schools are important settings for prevention, but whether preventive programming meets student needs is unknown.4 This study examined trends in school programming related to mental health and substance use and teacher professional development across US middle and high schools from 2008-2020. [JAMA]

    ...In total, 76 826 schools participated. From 2008-2018, 9865 to 12 387 schools participated, with 70% to 94% responding in each state. 

    More> 

    You may be interested in a past webinar on School Mental Health, click here for the webinar video.

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  • 14 Jan 2025 5:46 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    The Illinois House of Representatives has named leaders of its committees for the coming legislative session. [Health News Illinois]

    House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, D-Hillside, said in a statement that committee chairs provide “invaluable legislative knowledge, firsthand experience at the critical junctures where policy is implemented on the community level, an abiding sense of compassion and a deep appreciation for the importance of the work we’re doing on behalf of Illinois families.”

    For notable healthcare committee appointments: 

    • Rep. Anna Moeller, D-Elgin, will chair the Appropriations-Health and Human Services Committee.
    • Rep. Bob Morgan, D-Deerfield, will chair the Healthcare Licenses Committee.
    • Rep. Natalie Manley, D-Joliet, will chair the Healthcare Availability and Access Committee.
    • Rep. Terra Costa Howard, D-Glen Ellyn, will chair the Human Services Committee.
    • Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, will chair the Insurance Committee.
    • Rep. Lindsey LaPointe, D-Chicago, will chair the Mental Health and Addiction Committee.
    • Rep. Jawaharial Williams, D-Chicago, will chair the Prescription Drug Affordability Committee.
    • Rep. Anne Stava-Murray, D-Naperville, will chair the Public Health Committee.

    Welch recently announced several changes to the House’s leadership team. While Rep. Robyn Gabel, D-Evanston, remains majority leader, Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago, will become speaker pro-tempore and co-budgeteer. Other co-budgeteers will be Reps. Eva-Dina Delgado, D-Chicago, and Will Guzzardi, D-Chicago.

    Former speaker pro-tempore and budgeteer Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth, D-Peoria, will serve as an assistant majority leader.

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  • 13 Jan 2025 5:39 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    The "medical freedom" movement that has gained traction in the U.S. since the COVID-19 pandemic could continue to push public health statistics in a troubling direction, experts told MedPage Today.

    They were in part reacting to a recent New York Times story about how vaccine skeptics and others in the "medical freedom" movement are having more influence on American politics.

    Indeed, in recent years, childhood vaccination rates have declined, while exemption rates have gone up, according to KFF. In 2024, the percentage of U.S. kindergartners with an exemption from at least one required vaccine increased to 3.3%, the highest percentage ever noted, according to the CDC. There also were more than 32,000 cases of pertussis, surpassing pre-pandemic levels, and there were 16 measles outbreaks totaling 284 cases, up from 4 outbreaks with 59 cases the year prior, CDC said.

    More>

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  • 10 Jan 2025 12:49 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    The United States has the highest rate of drug overdose deaths out of 30 countries, according to a new report from the health nonprofit the Commonwealth Fund.   [KFF Health News & The Hill]

    Overdose deaths in the U.S. dipped slightly around 2018 after a years-long rise. But those deaths began to rise again in 2019 and shot up during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  

    More>

  • 9 Jan 2025 5:37 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    The Institute of Medicine of Chicago 2025  Leadership Awards are open for nominations. The seven award categories are open to all through April 23, 2025.  There is no fee to submit an entry. The award winners will be recognized at the 2025 Leadership Awards & Annual Meeting on June 26, 2025 at Maggianos-Chicago.  More details here>

    This year, 2025, IOMC celebrates its 110th Anniversary.  We are preparing for a wonderful event - accomplishments and bright future. Join us! 

    This is IOMC's largest event of the year. Don't miss it- meet the new Board of Governors, keynote speakers, awards recognition, introducing the new Class of Fellows, networking and more. Look for more information and details in the coming weeks. 

    Interested in past award recipients, visit this page> 

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  • 8 Jan 2025 12:09 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    On Jan. 6, 2025, CMS announced the 15 states selected to participate in the Transforming Maternal Health (TMaH) model.  The model launched on January 1, 2025, and will run for 10 years. [CMS]

    Model Overview 

    TMaH is the newest CMS model designed to focus exclusively on improving maternal health care for people enrolled in Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The model will support participating state Medicaid agencies (SMAs) in the development of a whole-person approach to pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care that addresses the physical, mental health, and social needs experienced during pregnancy. The goal of the model is to reduce disparities in access and treatment. The model aims to improve outcomes and experiences for mothers and their newborns, while also reducing overall program expenditures.

    Despite spending more per capita on maternal health care than any other nation, the U.S. has disproportionately high rates of adverse pregnancy outcomes as compared to other high-income nations. The TMaH Model provides SMAs with targeted support in the form of funding and technical assistance. The goal of this support is to improve maternal health care and birth outcomes while reducing associated health disparities.  This support also enables states to develop a value-based alternative payment model for maternity care services which will improve quality and health outcomes and promote long term sustainability of services.

    TMaH’s initiatives will center on three main pillars> 

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  • 7 Jan 2025 5:32 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    Illinois will receive $17 million over the next 10 years to support a new Medicaid model to improve maternal health outcomes. [Health News Illinois]

    Illinois was one of 15 states to receive approval Monday from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to develop and pilot a comprehensive, integrated approach to physical and mental health, as well as social needs for people during pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum care.

    The Department of Healthcare and Family Services said in a statement the project will be piloted in the Aurora and Rockford communities, which include a mix of rural, suburban and urban populations and “persistent disparities” in maternal health and birth outcomes.

    The project has a three-year pre-implementation period and a seven-year implementation period. HFS will work with providers and community-based organizations to implement it.

    “We are honored to be chosen to participate in this new, innovative model, which will allow us to focus directly on improving maternal and child health outcomes in two underserved areas of the state,” said HFS Acting Director Lizzy Whitehorn. “This support will go a long way to promoting equitable access to healthcare for families at a very critical time — during pregnancy, through childbirth and during the postpartum period.”

    The agency said most of the funds will be invested in provider infrastructure. The money will help to develop a value-based alternative payment model for maternity care services. 

    The effort aims to increase access to midwives, doulas, lactation consultants and perinatal community health workers. It will target improving prenatal care for chronic conditions like diabetes and hypertension, reducing complicated procedures like C-sections for low-risk birthing persons and lowering rates of postpartum depression and anxiety.

    Department of Public Health Director Dr. Sameer Vohra said they will support the initiative. It builds on Gov JB Pritzker’s administration’s goal to improve Illinois’ maternal health outcomes. 

    “​​This latest effort by HFS to improve maternal health is another example of Illinois finding innovative solutions to improving the physical, mental and social care of our residents,” Vohra said

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