This year, we celebrated “Go Fly a Kite Day” (June 15, the anniversary of Ben Franklin’s kite experiment in 1752) by presenting at the Kansas Association of Local Health Department’s Mid-Year Meeting. We discussed the impact of the Affordable Care Act on local health departments and the communities they service. You can access the powerpoint presentation here.
As you will see, we covered a lot of ground in a short period of time. We focused in particular on the new requirement that tax-exempt hospitals conduct a community health needs assessment on a tri-annual basis and develop an implementation strategy to address identified needs. Local health departments face a similar requirement as part of the national voluntary accreditation program which begins in 2011. There are great opportunities for community hospitals and health departments to work together to leverage opportunities under the new health care reform law.
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