Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the Obama Administration created the federal Health Insurance Navigator Program, which seeks to reduce the rate of uninsured in the United States. Under this program, navigators help people procure insurance coverage through federally facilitated Marketplaces (or Exchanges). During COVID-19, financial insecurity and substantial budget cuts created increased shortages and…
The COVID-19 pandemic drove widespread use of telehealth, making the virtual care environment inherently different in 2021 than it had been previously. Due to unique financial constraints facing community health centers (CHCs), the sustainability of telehealth may be highly relevant to the relationship between telehealth utilization and payment parity. This article discusses the association between…
Accelerating rates of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia (ADRD) has led to a greater reliance on adult day health centers (ADHCs) and their skilled workforce. Although there is a lot of research on this topic, little is known about staffing in ADHCs that provide ADRD services compared to ADHCs that do not. As populations with…
The COVID-19 pandemic upended the healthcare system and prompted the use of telehealth by providers in medicine, behavioral health, and oral health. Dental providers are particularly susceptible due to the aerosols generated during dental procedures that could facilitate COVID-19 transmission. This high risk resulted in the suspension of many routine dental procedures in the early…
Community-based doulas provide essential services and expertise which address inequities and systemic gaps in perinatal care. However, as they work to improve perinatal health, doulas themselves are providing equity work amidst an inequitable system and with insufficient political or financial support. Increased compensation and systemic support which acknowledges the breadth of services provided are needed…
It is well known that Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) as well as people with disabilities experience discrimination and bias in the health care services they receive. Few studies have examined such inequities in healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic, where pandemic-related restrictions and policies compounded existing inequitable care for these populations. This article…
Health centers provide primary care to millions of patients with limited English proficiency (LEP) through language service programs. Approximately 25% of 30 million patients who received care at health centers in 2019 had LEP and needed interpreters when clinicians and other staff were not fluent in their language. This article examines interpreter use in health…
In times of heightened population health needs, the health workforce must respond quickly and efficiently, especially at the state level. The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the needs for greater flexibility in scope of practice and interstate mobility areas of health workforce regulation. The lack of a coordinated national response early in the pandemic left the onus…
Little research has compared the demographic and practice characteristics of registered nurses (RNs) who work in public health (PH RNs) with other RNs and advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) who work in public health (PH APRNs) with other APRNs. This article examines differences in characteristics between PH RNs and other RNs and between PH APRNs…
The COVID-19 pandemic impacted consumer access to oral health care. The temporary closure of dental offices and fear related to the pandemic affected dental visits and led to experimentation in using teledentistry to serve oral health care needs. This article examines consumers’ use of teledentistry from June 2019 through June 2020, assessing respondents’ teledentistry use…
