Accelerating Health Equity Conference – May 16-18, 2023

Mark your calendars to join the AHA next year in Minneapolis. The Accelerating Health Equity Conference, hosted by AHA Community Health Improvement (ACHI) and the Institute for Diversity and Health Equity (IFDHE), takes place May 16-18. Content areas include:

1. Building Authentic and Sustained Community Engagement
   and Partnership.
2. Understanding and Meeting Individual Health and Social Needs.
3. Establishing Systematic and Shared Accountability and Building Diverse Leadership and Governance.
4. Creating Equitable and Inclusive Workplaces.

CHA will host a networking event for CHA members attending the conference. Don’t miss this opportunity to meet ministry colleagues from across the country working on community health and health equity.

Come to the Table: USDA's National Nutrition Security and Healthcare Summit

On Oct. 27 the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) brought together more than 200 healthcare, federal, and community leaders to discuss ways to advance goals to eliminate hunger and diet-related diseases announced at the September White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health. Using the Biden-Harris Administration National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition and Health as the framework, the USDA summit highlighted ways health care organizations can work with government agencies, such as USDA and CMS, and community groups to help ensure the nutrition needs of all people.

Some of the strategy recommendations for hospitals include incentivizing hospitals to focus on food security by clarifying that these actions can be reported as community benefit on the IRS Form 990 Schedule H and including screening of social needs into federal quality measures.

Report Calls for Policies to Hold Nonprofit Hospitals Accountable

A new report by the Center for American Progress examines how nonprofit hospitals have been carrying out their charity care and community benefit obligations by reviewing recent studies and reports on hospital tax-exemption. The report suggests government policy options to improve accountability, including:

• Setting clear standards for charity care eligibility and obligations
• Tightening the definition of "community benefit"
• Requiring hospitals to engage the community in needs assessments and implementation plans
• Requiring nonprofit hospitals to participate in public health programs
• Limiting extraordinary debt collection practices
• Empowering the Federal Trade Commission to regulate nonprofit hospital conduct