Notice of Rulemaking: DORA-Insurance November 1, 2018

October 8, 2018

The Department of Regulatory Agencies - Insurance will be holding a rulemaking hearing on Thursday, November 1st, 2018, 2:00 pm on rules regarding 4-2-53. The hearing will be held at: 1560 Broadway, Ste 110 D, Denver CO 80202.

The purpose of this rulemaking is: 

The purpose of this regulation is to provide carriers offering Affordable Care Act (ACA)-compliant health benefit plans with standards and guidance on Colorado filing requirements for health benefit plan network adequacy filings. These standards shall serve as the measurable requirements used by the Division to evaluate the adequacy of carrier networks.

If you believe there will be a significant negative impact on small business, job creation or economic competitiveness, you may request that the Department of Regulatory Agencies require the rulemaking agency to prepare a cost-benefit analysis of a proposed rule or amendment. This request must be made to the Department of Regulatory Agencies by Monday, October 15th, 2018.

You may also submit comments directly to the rulemaking agency for the agency's consideration during the upcoming rulemaking hearing.

Colorado Hospital Association 2018 Patient Safety Leadership Congress October 23, 2018

October 1, 2018

Today I am writing to invite you to the 2018 Colorado Hospital Association Patient Safety Leadership Congress, which is being held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 23, at the Denver Marriot South in Park Meadows. This year’s seminar will focus on equipping attendees with solutions for closing the gaps in behavioral health care, including virtual health. It presents an excellent opportunity to learn from successful and innovative models of care from around the country. The program will include a wide variety of experts and thought leaders in behavioral health care, including: 

• Hochang Benjamin Lee, MD, regional chief of psychiatry for University of Rochester Medical Center, will speak on a new behavioral health care model called “proactive consultation-liaison.” Dr. Lee will address how this model works to reduce lengths of stay, denied days and the use of constant companions by emphasizing screening, early intervention and deploying a multidisciplinary behavioral health team.
• Barbara Martin, the director of the Colorado State Innovation Model Office, will teach the audience how two federal initiatives, which have brought in $76 million to the state, are improving care coordination and referral processes to improve outcomes for behavioral health patients.

Registration and more information about the 2018 Patient Safety Leadership Congress can be found online. Please note that early bird registration closes on Friday, Oct. 12.

2018-2019 CDPHE Assessment and Planning

October 1, 2018

Talk to us, Colorado.  Take the poll. Every five years, CDPHE gathers information to figure out how Colorado is doing on the health and environment front. We talk to local governments, nonprofit organizations, faith communities and businesses regarding a ton of things like suicide, obesity and air pollution. We use the information we gather to identify our priorities for the next five years. Maybe it's looking for solutions for affordable housing. Maybe it's figuring out how to improve access to public transportation. Maybe it's finding ways to get folks the mental health support they need. Whatever our focus is, we want to make sure you help us shape it.  That is why you might notice us pounding the pavement and talking with Colorado residents. The more folks we talk to, the better able we are to help. So please take our brief poll so we can find out what concerns you, what you like best about living here and what support your community needs.  For further info: 2018-2019 Assessment and Planning Homepage If you have questions about the 2018-2019 Colorado Health and Environmental Assessment and Planning, please contact the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment staff below.  Cristina Bejarano [email protected] 303-692-6358 Anne-Marie Braga [email protected] 303-692-2361

CDPHE Dialysis Infection Prevention Using CDC's Core Interventions

October 1, 2018

Patients who undergo dialysis treatment have an increased risk for getting an infection. Hemodialysis patients are at a high risk for infection because the process of hemodialysis requires frequent use of catheters or insertion of needles to access the bloodstream. Hemodialysis patients have weakened immune systems, which increase their risk for infection, and they require frequent hospitalizations and surgery where they might acquire an infection.

The Making Dialysis Safer for Patients Coalition is a partnership of organizations and individuals that have joined forces with the common goal of promoting the use of Centers Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) core interventions and resources to prevent dialysis bloodstream infections. Launched in September 2016, the Coalition's goals are to:

- Facilitate implementation and adoption of core interventions through promotion, dissemination, and use of audit tools, checklists, and other resources  
- Increase awareness about the core interventions for dialysis bloodstream infection prevention through educational efforts 
- Share experiences and findings through collaboration with other Coalition participants 
These Core Interventions have been proven to reduce dialysis bloodstream infections (BSIs), visit: 
https://www.cdc.gov/dialysis/PDFs/Dialysis-Core-Interventions-5_10_13.pdf 

The audit tools and checklists below are intended to promote CDC-recommended practices for infection prevention in hemodialysis facilities. Individuals when assessing staff practices can use the audit tools and checklists. The audit tools can be used to help guide facility staff practices. Apply the CDC Core Interventions when using the audit tools and checklists by visiting: 
https://www.cdc.gov/dialysis/prevention-tools/audit-tools.html. 

If you have an upcoming training or would like a guest speaker to present on Infection Prevention in Dialysis Centers, CDC and Making Dialysis Safer resources and tools, or to discuss how we can work together in our common goal to reduce blood stream infections, please contact Sara Avalos (303) 691-7840 or  [email protected] Dialysis Infection Preventionist at CDPHE.