Dear Partners

This week is a special anniversary here at HHS. Six years ago, President Obama set us on a path to change the face of health care in our nation when he signed the Affordable Care Act into law. Since the law was enacted the uninsured rate is at the lowest level on record with 20 million uninsured Americans having gained health care coverage; health care prices have been rising at the slowest rate in five decades and Medicare spent $473 billion less through 2014 compared to spending growth trends before 2009.

The ACA is also building a health care system that works better, spends dollars smarter, and keeps people healthy. Just yesterday, the independent Office of the Actuary in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) certified that an expansion of the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), a model funded by the Affordable Care Act, would reduce net Medicare spending. In a pilot study conducted at YMCAs nationwide it was found that “older people could lose weight through lifestyle counseling and regular meetings that encourage healthful eating habits and exercise – an improvement that helps stave off diabetes.” HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell “said prevention programs of this kind ‘help people live longer, fuller lives and save money across the [health care] system.’” The CDC certified community-based intervention is the first preventive service model from the CMS Innovation Center that has become eligible for expansion into the Medicare program under the Affordable Care Act. Read Secretary Burwell's speech regarding this new program, or check out the fact sheet for more information about the program.

And, in our continuing work, don't miss the webinar next Wednesday to make sure to have the latest information about the Zika Virus and new resources highlighted below strengthening outcomes for children.

To share your efforts related to any of these important issues, please contact the HHS Partnership Center at Partnerships@hhs.gov or 202-358-3595.

Sincerely,

Acacia Bamberg Salatti, Acting Director

Center for Faith-based & Neighborhood Partnerships

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

Webinars

What We Know, and Faith and Community Organizations Should Know, About Zika

Wednesday, March 30, 2016 1:00 PM EDT

REGISTER

Please join Lieutenant Commander Dr. Joanna Gaines, PhD, MPH as she shares information on what we know regarding the threat of Zika, and helpful information you can use to prepare your family and community.

Resources

Find and Implement Parenting Programs

Faith and community-based programs can use the these tools to make it easier to find and implement parenting interventions that have a research base and are responsive to families’ and communities’ needs. The Compendium of Parenting Interventions along with the companion Guidebook for Implementationprovides critical information about the compiled interventions as well as the steps to successfully implement a parenting intervention in an early childhood program. These resources work in connection with a wide range of tools that reflect the Administration’s focus on supporting early childhood programs, so they can better partner with families because partnering with families on children’s learning and development is essential, not supplemental, to preparing children for school and helping them succeed once they arrive.