HIV, STI, Viral Hepatitis and Harm Reduction Digest
February 15, 2023
NACCHO News and Announcements
RIM RFA Deadlines Extended
Good news! NACCHO has extended the deadline for both RIM RFAs to March 10, 2023 at 11:59 pm ET. Learn more about the RFAs here:
New Funding Opportunities to Decrease Syphilis via Community Engagement
NACCHO is pleased to announce two new funding opportunities to decrease syphilis via community engagement. Both opportunities focus on engaging community members to develop, or tailor, a plan to decrease syphilis burden in the local community.
Community engagement is pivotal for public health, and the cornerstone of these funding opportunities. It is a process that seeks out insight from the community into their own needs and priorities. Involving community members, including people with lived experience, in a community engagement and planning process can identify challenges that contribute to the increases in syphilis, reduce stigma, and help improve sexual health literacy. It can also facilitate opportunities to develop or enhance interventions that can contribute to better sexual health outcomes (e.g., decreasing syphilis, congenital syphilis, HIV, and/or other STIs).
The first opportunity is Community Engagement to Strengthen Local Health Department Approaches to Decreasing Syphilis for which any local health department is eligible to apply, and which can be used to focus on a specific population, geographic area, or other target identified by local data which experiences significant syphilis burden. NACCHO will fund up to 8 health departments $75,000-150,000 each, for this process.
The second is Community Engagement to Strengthen Approaches to Decreasing Syphilis Among American Indian/Alaska Native Populations which is open for applications from health departments (local or tribal/IHS facilities) to use community engagement approaches to develop, or tailor, a plan to address syphilis within AI/AN communities. Non-AI/AN organizations applying for this RFA must do so in partnership with AI/AN organizations already engaged with the community (i.e., Indian health organizations or health boards). This opportunity is available for up to three entities for $75,000-150,000 each.
Applications for both RFAs are due on March 3, 2023, and all additional information can be found in the linked RFAs above. For questions, contact Rebekah Horowitz, Director, STI Programs, at [email protected].
HIV, STI, and Hepatitis Resources and News
Syphilis and People Who Use Drugs Webinar Series
The United States is currently experiencing unprecedented levels of drug overdose and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including syphilis. These epidemics are closely connected, with high rates of STIs among people who use drugs, high rates of substance use disorder among STI clinic clients, and a strong association between substance use and congenital syphilis; this is in part due to shared root causes and risk factors, such as unstable housing, involvement with the criminal justice system, poor access to healthcare, and stigma and discrimination including from medical providers. NACCHO with AIDS United, NASTAD, NCSD, and the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board will be co-hosting a webinar series exploring syphilis among communities of people who use drugs.
This series consists of five monthly sessions with the first webinar, “If You’re Not Seeing It Yet, You Will: Collaborating to Address Syphilis Among People Who Use Drugs” taking place on March 28th, 2023, at 3pm ET (2pm CT, 1pm MT, 12pm PT, 11am AKT). In the first webinar we will provide an overview of the latest syphilis data with a focus on its connections to substance use and people who use drugs, as well as the key systems and stakeholders working at this intersection. Interactive breakouts will follow based on sector – harm reductionists will gather with STI experts and harm reduction experts will welcome STI staff. A brief Q&A will close the session. Please register here.
DIS Scholarship Opportunity
To recognize the incredible work of disease intervention specialists (DIS) across the country, the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) and the National Coalition of STD Directors (NCSD) is pleased to offer scholarships for DIS who work in local and state health departments to attend the NCSD annual meeting, STD Engage. This meeting will be held in person in New Orleans, LA on May 16-18, 2023, with pre-conference events starting on May 15, 2023. DIS will have the opportunity to attend numerous sessions focused on STI prevention and control, as well as sessions specific to their workforce with opportunities to network with other DIS. The preliminary schedule for the conference can be viewed here. Scholarships will cover conference registration, lodging, travel, and per diem expenses. Please note that this scholarship will not be awarded to previous scholarship recipients.
For more information regarding the scholarship and to apply, please visit: DIS Scholarship Application (2023) (google.com). If there are any additional questions regarding this opportunity, please contact: Daisha Washington ([email protected]) or Leo Parker ([email protected]).
National Harm Reduction Technical Assistance (NHRTAC) Calendar
Check out NHRTAC’s event calendar here to stay updated with all upcoming NHRTAC (free) events. Anyone needing harm reduction technical support can use the site as a resource!
HHS HIV clinical practice guidelines now incorporate breastfeeding options for people with HIV on antiretroviral therapy with sustained undetectable viral load (levels of virus in the blood).
People with HIV (PWH) who are considering conception, are pregnant, or in the postpartum period should receive evidence-based counseling to support decision making about infant feeding. READ MORE.
NASTAD Resources and Webinar Recording
Recap from the NASTAD webinar on January 25, 2023: Overview of Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Health Care Coverage Assistance Coordination can be found here.
The NASTAD resource discussed in this webinar, RWHAP Part B/ADAP Coordination with Medicare, can be found here. We will share the resource Amy discussed as soon as it’s available.
Issue briefs, fact sheets, toolkits, etc.
- Issue Brief: Older Immigrants and Medicare, Justice in Aging
Resource hubs
- Medicare Interactive, Medicare Rights Center
- ***Includes information about new SEPs, including an SEP that allows clients to enroll in Medicare outside of the usual enrollment periods when their Medicaid coverage ends. This will be especially important during the Medicaid “unwinding” period.
- TargetHIV, ACE TA Center
Finding local Medicare help
“Unwinding” of Medicaid continuous coverage condition
- NASTAD webinars (slides and recordings) (note that these webinars also include other topics)
- October 2021
- March 2022
- October 2022
- Unwinding the PHE resources, Georgetown University Health Policy Institute Center for Children and Families
- 50-State Unwinding Tracker
- Webinar Series: Unwinding the COVID-19 Medicaid Continuous Eligibility Provision
- CMS page for unwinding resources: federal guidance, comms toolkits, helping clients transition to other coverage, and more
The CDC has issued a new grants notice titled Integrated Viral Hepatitis Surveillance and Prevention Funding for Health Departments Supplement. Only organizations previously funded by CDC’s Integrated Viral Hepatitis Surveillance and Prevention Funding for Health Departments (CDC-RFA-PS21-2103) (IVHSP) are eligible to apply. There are two goals of this funding, and they are as follows:
- Increase early detection and interruption of hepatitis C outbreaks and transmission clusters, and
- Increase hepatitis B and hepatitis C diagnosis and treatment by providing routine testing and linkage to prevention and treatment in high-impact settings.
There are two components to this funding grant. Applicants are encouraged to apply for one or both components.
Component 1: Integrating Genomic and Epidemiologic Surveillance for Outbreak Detection and Response. The purpose of this project is to work with health departments to develop an integrated epidemiological and molecular surveillance system for HCV infection to identify HCV transmission clusters and outbreaks for public health action.
Component 2: Increasing Access to Hepatitis C and/or Hepatitis B Testing and Linkage to Care in High-Impact Settings. The purpose of this project is to work with partners to conduct testing and linkage to care for hepatitis B virus (HBV) and/or HCV infection in high-impact settings (e.g., syringe services programs or SSPs, substance use disorder treatment centers, correctional facilities, emergency departments, and sexually transmitted infections clinics).
Applications are due no later than 11:59 pm ET on March 15, 2023.
News to Note
HIV Is Treatable, but Homelessness Can Make it Fatal
Upcoming Opportunities
February 21 Webinar: Beyond the Alerts: Practical Guidance for Responding to Xylazine
Please join NASTAD and partners for a webinar on Tuesday, February 21, 3:00-4:30 PM EST to discuss field-based observations and practices when working with people experiencing health problems related to xylazine presence in the drug supply. To join the webinar, you may register here.
Jurisdictions are reporting the increased use of the veterinary sedative, xylazine, as an adulterant in the illicit drug supply. Although first documented in the early 2000s in Puerto Rico and Philadelphia, little guidance exists on how to best respond to related health risks. This webinar focuses on working with people who have xylazine-related wounds, responding to overdoses involving xylazine, and managing withdrawal. Information shared may be useful for any individuals who are using drugs that may be adulterated with xylazine or for programs that want to share guidance with their direct service staff.
The webinar will be moderated by Alice Bell, L.C.S.W., the Project Coordinator for Prevention Point Pittsburgh’s Overdose Prevention Project and a co-facilitator of the Opiate Safety and Naloxone Network. The webinar will feature Jason Beinert, a registered nurse in Maryland who has been working with people impacted by xylazine in inpatient critical care, outpatient, and community-based settings. Jason’s work in wound care has focused on teaching people how to best care for xylazine-related wounds. Jason will share his observations and what he has learned and been taught by the people he serves.
For more information about xylazine, please refer to these resources from the National Harm Reduction Coalition.
Please contact Billy Golden or Drug User Health Team for further questions.
