Patrick Jones Jun News Today

The University of Utah Health’s (U of U Health) Huntsman Mental Health Institute (HMHI) held a panel on Wednesday discussing the ways HMHI and U of U Health are advancing health equity and provider competency for the LGBTQIA+ affirming care for the community.

The Utah Legislature is thinking of ways to align the priorities of local county health departments in the state with the funding and stipulations of the state and federal governments.

The federal Center for Optimizing Rural Health (CORH) is accepting applications for the Vulnerable Rural Hospital Assistance Program, which provides free technical support to rural hospitals through guidance, resources, and recommendations. The program aims to address economic challenges faced by hospitals. 

Jared Sanford is the President and CEO of Valley Behavioral Health in Utah. Before Valley, Sanford was President and CEO of Lifeline Connections, a substance use and mental health treatment facility in Vancouver, WA. 

As the merge of the Utah Department of Health and the Utah Department of Human Services draws nearer, the new Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is wrapping up their final preparations for the July 1st merger.

The end of the PHE presents risk to those who received Medicaid coverage throughout the pandemic, but might not be eligible when redeterminations begin again.

Utah’s reported COVID-19 cases have been going up significantly in the past 2 weeks. But hospitalizations and emergency room visits are low compared to earlier surges, said Leisha Nolen, MD, Utah’s State Epidemiologist. 

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