NAPH Meets with HRSA to Discuss CCN Funding and Implementation - June 15, 2010

On June 7, NAPH staff and other coalition allies met with senior officials at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to discuss future funding and implementation of the Community-Based Collaborative Care Network (CCN) program, recently authorized by the health reform law. HRSA’s budget director, Thomas Morford and the Bureau of Primary Health Care’s James Macrae represented the agency. Mr. Morford confirmed that HRSA has submitted its initial 2012 budget to the Department of Health and Human Services and has requested funding to implement all health reform programs within its jurisdiction, including a separate line-item for CCN. Mr. Macrae, whose bureau will implement the bill, discussed the new program’s benefits and asked for a follow-up meeting with stakeholders who operate care coordination networks to discuss implementation details. NAPH continues to lobby for an FY 2011 appropriation, but notes that Congress appears unlikely to fund many new health reform initiatives in the upcoming fiscal year.