The Chautauqua Center

Congressman Nick Langworthy announced the grant from the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The funding is being distributed through the H80 – Health Center Cluster program and will aid in providing medical, dental, pharmaceutical, and behavioral services to the residents of Southern Tier.

Two health organizations in Langworthy’s districts receiving funds include The Chautauqua Center with a $3,179,348 award and the Southern Tier Community Health Center Network in Olean being awarded $2,477,540.

The New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance and Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence announced that more than $350,000 has been awarded to implement comprehensive services for victims and survivors of domestic violence who need assistance accessing child support.

The funding will enable the State’s Child Support Services program to work with New York City and 12 counties on developing and testing new approaches to ensuring all New Yorkers can safely pursue child support.

New York was one of 13 sites nationwide to recently receive funding through a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families’ Safe Access for Victims’ Economic Security (SAVES) demonstration grant. The overall goal of the grant is to increase safe access to child support and related services for victims and survivors of domestic violence.

With this funding, several critical stakeholders will be brought together to develop revised policies, processes and training that ensures all parents, especially domestic violence survivors, can safely seek child support services.

The pilot program will implement and test the effectiveness of the revisions over the next five years.

This effort will involve the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance and experts from the Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence, working collaboratively with local partners and others to help develop and implement comprehensive policies and procedures for:
– Establishing paternity
– Implementing child support and visitation orders
– Modifying and enforcing existing orders
– Connecting victims/survivors to essential support services
– Identifying and mitigating disparities in access caused by victimization
– And adopting case management strategies to manage interactions with parents who have used violence

The selected counties will then implement these changes as part of a pilot project to test their effectiveness and make further adjustments as needed.

Find more information on New York’s Child Support Services program at https://childsupport.ny.gov.

The panel of outside vaccine experts voted 21-0 with one abstention in favor of the vaccine for those 18 and older after discussing whether the shot’s benefits outweigh risks, including rare occurrences of heart inflammation that may be associated with the vaccine.

If the FDA follows the recommendation and authorizes the shot, it will be the fourth COVID vaccine available for use in adults in the United States. The FDA has approved previous COVID shots within days of panel votes, with distribution quickly following.

Novavax Chief Commercial Officer John Trizzino says he hopes to have the product available in the U.S. by the end of June.

Novavax’s shot, which is already available in over 40 countries, is a more traditional type of vaccine employing technology that has been used for decades to combat diseases like influenza.

Before shots can be administered, the FDA must authorize the vaccine and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention needs to green light its use.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement on Monday that it is coordinating with Novavax “to receive a limited quantity of vaccine and will make that vaccine available to the American public” once those steps are complete. A CDC panel may consider the Novavax shots late next week.

Novavax filed for U.S. authorization in late January, almost a year behind its original plan, following development and manufacturing problems.

CNN reports the President is invoking the act — which allows the government more control over industrial production during emergencies — to direct suppliers of formula ingredients to prioritize delivery to the manufacturers of formula.

Biden also announced the creation of Operation Fly Formula, which directs the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture to utilize the Defense Department‘s commercial planes to import formula from abroad.

The Defense Department will use contracts with commercial cargo airlines, according to the White House, to transport foreign baby formula products that have met US Food and Drug Administration standards to the US.

Wednesday’s announcement follows other steps the administration has taken over the last week to address concerns about a months-long formula shortage, which has worsened as a result of supply chain issues and the extended closure of a major formula plant in Michigan.

The FDA has reached an agreement with Abbott Nutrition to reopen that plant. The agreement lays out steps the manufacturer must take to restart production at its manufacturing plant in Sturgis, Michigan.

Once Abbott has completed the to-do list to the FDA’s satisfaction, the company says it would take two weeks to resume production of baby formula at the facility.

A White House official also told CNN earlier Wednesday that the Biden administration is working directly with infant formula manufacturer Reckitt and retailers, including Target, to provide logistical support as it works to help alleviate a nationwide formula shortage.

The administration also established a website, HHS.gov/formula, to provide resources to families in need.

U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer

U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer is calling on the Federal government to reevaluate Provider Relief Funding for Hospitals as COVID-19 cases are on the rise.

Schumer, at a press conference in Wyoming County Sunday, said the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) needs to start to take into account the recent surges and new serious developments in COVID which have greatly impacted Upstate communities when determining the next round of the American Rescue Plan’s (ARP) pandemic Provider Relief Fund (PRF) payment calculations.

Schumer explained that HHS has not yet released the formula for how the next round of Provider Relief Fund payments will be calculated, but that currently it is marked as “General Distribution” meaning they won’t be taking into account COVID prevalence, but rather only weeks old data financial information that captures revenues lost and additional expenses due to COVID-19 from prior months. In addition, he said providers already had to submit their revenue and loss data for this grant round over a month ago, meaning it will likely not account for the reality facing many Western New York hospitals given the recent surge.

Schumer explained that he is also urging that HHS get the payments for these struggling hospitals, which has already been appropriated as a part of the American Rescue Plan, out the door as soon as possible to help cover the rising costs from the surge in cases.

He also urged HHS to specifically take into account the loss of elective surgery revenue at 32 upstate hospitals that had to suspend elective surgeries starting this week because a spike in COVID-19 hospital admissions has reduced their available bed capacity to 10% or less. Both UPMC Chautauqua and Brooks Memorial are among those 32 hospitals.

Senator Schumer has delivered over $13.5 billion in grant funding to New York hospitals and providers through the Provider Relief Fund. In Chautauqua County, since the beginning of the Pandemic, UPMC Chautauqua has received $17,618,300 in Provider Relief Funds with Brooks Memorial receiving $10,468,315.

According to a media release from Congressman Tom Reed’s Office, the grant funding provides critical financial assistance to health care providers in under-served areas.

“We care about making sure our constituents have fair access to the quality medical care they need, especially in our current situation,” said Reed. “We were proud to support this funding and we will continue to fight for the support and resources our region needs to maintain our health care system.”

“The news that we have been funded for another three years allows The Chautauqua Center to continue its mission to deliver comprehensive high quality patient-centered health and support services in the Chautauqua region and the surrounding areas,” said Chautauqua Center CEO Michael C. Pease. “Now more than ever, health centers across the nation are serving as critical front line providers during the pandemic. We appreciate the leadership of congressman Reed and other elected officials who have supported us in the past and continue to do so now. Without this support we would not be able to provide the fully integrated care we do including primary care, women’s health, behavioral health, oral health, chiropractic services, pharmacy and a number of support services. Through the vision of our community board of directors we have grown to over 120 staff members serving more than 13,000 people since we were first awarded in 2012.”

“This funding allows us to continue the care we provide for the community, regardless of ability to pay or insurance status,” said Southern Tier Community Health Network CEO George Barton. “We’re certainly blessed to be a recipient off the funds. We serve over 10,000 people a year and this funding is critically important to address the needs of the community not only medically, but also through dental and mental health services.”

The Chautauqua Center has two locations in Chautauqua County, including the recently completed facility on Institute Street in Jamestown.

Southern Tier Community Health Network is the only Federally Qualified Health Center in Cattaraugus, Allegany and McKean (Pennsylvania) counties.

That’s according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who made the statement after visiting one of the agencies caring for some of the hundreds of displaced kids the federal government sent to New York.

The governor is demanding that federal authorities provide information on the estimated 700 immigrant children sent to foster care agencies in New York state after being separated from their parents.

Cuomo said it was “bizarre” that the federal Department of Health and Human Services doesn’t allow contracted foster care agencies to divulge information about the children to state authorities seeking to offer assistance.

The governor has said the state will be filing a lawsuit against the federal government for its handling of the “zero tolerance” policy that separated immigrant children from their families in May and also earlier this month.

The federal funding was allocated through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and will be used to support child care services for low-income families in Chautauqua County.

“Study after study shows that the better we prepare our young children through programs like Head Start and Early Head Start, the better they perform in school later in life,” said Senator Schumer. “This federal funding for Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc. will bring real results to young students in Western New York by providing them with the resources they need to succeed both in and out of the classroom. I am proud to support this essential funding and I will continue to fight to see that early childhood education remains a priority.”

“The Head Start and Early Head Start Programs help make sure that children across Chautauqua County can have equal access to early childhood care and education,” said Senator Gillibrand. “Through this federal investment, Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc. will be able to give some of our most vulnerable children a strong start in life, and will provide them with the tools they need to learn and grow. I will always fight in the Senate for the resources to support New York families with high-quality early childhood education.”

“We are thrilled to receive this funding from Head Start to ensure that every child in Chautauqua County has the resources they need to succeed. We strongly support programs that provide this crucial funding. This continuation will enable 502 children to take advantage of Head Start and 82 more infants, toddlers, and pregnant women to take advantage of Early Head Start,” said Franklin Monjarrez, Executive Director, Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc.

Head Start and Early Head Start provide comprehensive child development programs for low-income children from birth to age five, as well as support and services for their families. Head Start programs primarily serve children aged three to five, while Early Head Start serves pregnant women, infants, and toddlers. The comprehensive services these programs offer include early education, health screenings, social and emotional health, nutrition, social services, and services for children with disabilities.

On Wednesday U.S. Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand announced the release of $343 million in heating and home energy assistance funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

The two Senators had joined a bipartisan group of 46 Senators in urging HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell to release Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funding as quickly as possible, to ensure more families can access the resources they need to heat their homes this winter.

According to Schumer and Gillibrand, without these federal resources, households nationwide may have been subject to cuts in federal heating aid during this year’s winter months.

New York State has received over $300 million in LIHEAP funding each fiscal year for the last seven years.

In order to qualify for this benefit program, you must be a resident of the state of New York and you must need financial assistance for home energy costs.

For more infomation, visit the LIHEAP website.

Rep. Tom Reed (R-Corning)

WASHINGTON – Chautauqua County’s Congressman wants to make sure the head of Health and Human Services department is aware of the problems facing rural hospitals.

During a recent hearing of the Ways and Means Committee, Tom Reed (R-Corning) and other committee members heard about the problems facing hospitals throughout the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes. Specifically, about the hits they are taking as a result of what Reed says are ongoing cuts from Obamacare and reimbursement rates cuts included in the White House’s Fiscal Year 2015 budget proposal.

Reed specifically highlighted two hospitals in the district during the hearing – St. James Mercy in Steuben County and Lake Shore Hospital in Chautauqua County – as examples of local hospitals struggling under the current health care landscape.

Reed’s comments for Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius came during a Ways and Means Committee hearing on the President’s budget proposals for the Department of Health and Human Services for Fiscal Year 2015.