Free COVID-19 Testing Kits, Selecting a Primary Care Physician & More

Read News Releases Published by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services [American flag] An official email from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services [Header Logo]( Latest U.S. Department of Health & Human Services News Releases [Module 1 - Photo]( Free COVID-19 Testing Kits lf you’re experiencing cold or flu-like symptoms such as coughing, fever, chills, or sore throat, it’s time to test for COVID-19. Now, you can place an order to receive four more free COVID-19 testing kits to be delivered directly to your home. [Learn more »]( HHS News Releases Week of October 1st, 2023 [HHS Secretary Becerra's Statement on the Southern District of Ohio’s Decision on Medicare Drug Price Negotiation]( September 29, 2023 President Biden’s historic Inflation Reduction Act finally allowed Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices for millions of seniors and other beneficiaries – despite zero Republicans in Congress supporting it and Big Pharma spending hundreds of millions of dollars to prevent that from happening. [Read the full release »]( [ICYMI: Biden-Harris Administration Announces Over $330 Million Dollars in New Funding to Advance Biden Cancer Moonshot Initiative, Improve Health Care Research, Treatment, and Outcomes for the American Public]( September 29, 2023 The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced a series of research projects totaling over $330 million dollars that will support biomedical health breakthroughs aimed at improving health solutions and health care for the American public. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Announces Proposed Regulation to Strengthen Services and Protections for Unaccompanied Children in Its Care]( September 29, 2023 On September 29, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through the Administration for Children and Families’ (ACF) Office of Refugee Resettlement announced the publication of a proposed “Foundational” rule for ORR’s Unaccompanied Children (UC) Program. This proposed rule would codify a framework for the care and custody of unaccompanied children consistent with ORR’s statutory authorities and responsibilities, as well as with requirements established in the 1997 Flores Settlement Agreement (FSA). [Read the full release »]( [HHS Awards $4 Million for the Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity]( September 29, 2023 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Minority Health (OMH) announced it has awarded two organizations $4 million to support its Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity (CIIHE). The awards will support a five-year initiative to advance sustainable solutions that address Indigenous health disparities and advance health equity in American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) communities. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Awards $1.9 Million for a National Lupus Outreach and Clinical Trial Education Initiative]( September 29, 2023 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Minority Health (OMH) announced more than $1.9 million in grants to four organizations for its National Lupus Outreach and Clinical Trial Education Initiative. Over a three-year period, awardees will identify and sustain effective interventions to advance clinical trial diversity and to ultimately reduce health disparities experienced by racial and ethnic minority individuals with lupus. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Takes Action to Provide 12 Months of Mandatory Continuous Coverage for Children in Medicaid and CHIP]( September 29, 2023 On September 29, 2023, as part of its ongoing work to make sure all Americans have access to health care coverage, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), sent a letter to state health officials reinforcing that states must provide 12 months of continuous coverage for children under the age of 19 on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) beginning January 1, 2024. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Requests Public Input on Coverage of Over-the-Counter Preventive Services, Including Contraception, Tobacco Cessation, and Breastfeeding Supplies]( September 29, 2023 The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and the Treasury (the Departments) are seeking public input on how best to ensure coverage and access to over-the-counter (OTC) preventive services, including the benefits of requiring most health insurance plans to cover these services at no cost and without a prescription by a health care provider. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Secretary Becerra's Statement on the Passing of Senator Dianne Feinstein]( September 28, 2023 HHS Secretary Becerra had the honor to serve with Senator Dianne Feinstein for decades. He recalls she was a trailblazing champion for the people of California – as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, as Mayor of San Francisco, and as a United States Senator. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra Statement on National Sickle Cell Awareness Month]( September 28, 2023 Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is the most common inherited blood disorder in the U.S., affecting more than 100,000 Americans and disproportionately affecting Black and Hispanic Americans. This September HHS joined the community of individuals impacted by this disease, drawing attention to the unique issues and barriers people living with sickle cell disease face. [Read the full release »]( [In the Lead Up to Prevention Month, the Biden-Harris Administration Awards $42.6 Million to Expand and Strengthen the Capacity of States and Local Community Prevention Providers to Implement Evidence-based Prevention Strategies]( September 28, 2023 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), has awarded $42.6 million in Strategic Prevention Framework - Partnerships for Success (SPF-PFS) grants to 17 states and 60 communities (located across 33 states). These grants ― a foundational investment for substance use prevention in the U.S. ― focus on preventing substance use initiation and reducing the progression of substance use and related problems by supporting the development and delivery of state and community substance use prevention and mental health promotion strategies. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Launches Climate and Health Outlook Portal to Identify Counties at Risk of Climate-Related Hazards]( September 28, 2023 In coordination with the White House Summit on Building Climate Resilient Communities, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of Climate Change and Health Equity (OCCHE) and Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response’s (ASPR) Geospatial Team launched the Climate and Health Outlook Portal, an interactive tool that provides actionable, county-level data that can be used to prepare for climate-related hazard events. [Read the full release »]( [Biden-Harris Administration Announces $24.5 Million in Awards in Major Expansion of the Tribal Home Visiting Program]( September 28, 2023 The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced $24,500,000 in new awards to 34 tribes and tribal organizations to implement culturally grounded, evidence-based home visiting programs throughout the nation. These grants are part of the Tribal Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program, which supports and promotes the health and well-being of American Indian and Alaska Native expectant families and families with young children. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Office for Civil Rights Issues Bulletin on Countering Antisemitism and on Protecting Patients and Recipients of Human Services from Discrimination Based on Shared Ancestry or Ethnic Characteristics]( September 28, 2023 On September 28, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) joined seven other agencies in clarifying, for the first time in writing, that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act prohibits certain forms of antisemitic, Islamophobic, and related forms of discrimination in federally funded programs and activities. [Read the full release »]( [Readout of HHS Secretary Becerra’s Meeting with National Health Insurance Leaders]( September 27, 2023 On September 27, 2023, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra met virtually with health insurance company leaders and national stakeholders to discuss how HHS will continue to partner with the private sector to ensure individuals have access to updated COVID-19 vaccinations. This meeting is the latest in an ongoing series of conversations between HHS and representatives from across the health care sector for over a year in preparation for vaccine commercialization. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Announces Historic Child Welfare Package to Expand Support and Equity in Child Welfare System]( September 27, 2023 On September 27, 2023, the Biden-Harris administration, through the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), released three new rules that will have a profound impact on child welfare in America. The three rules will support kinship caregivers, protect LGBTQI+ children in foster care, and expand access to legal representation for children and families in the child welfare system. [Read the full release »]( [Biden-Harris Administration Awards More than $230 Million for Suicide Prevention, Behavioral Health Care Programs for At-Risk Communities]( September 27, 2023 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), recently awarded $232.2 million in grants for suicide prevention and behavioral health care for at-risk communities, including more than $200 million in new funding for states, territories, and Tribal nations and organizations to build local capacity for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and related crisis services. [Read the full release »]( [As Part of HHS’ Maternal Health Day of Action, the Biden-Harris Administration Announces More Than $103 Million and Launches New Initiatives to Address Maternal Health Crisis]( September 27, 2023 On September 27, 2023, as part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Maternal Health Day of Action, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra announced several new actions to address the nation’s longstanding maternal health crisis. [Read the full release »]( [Grant Announcement: HHS Awards $13 Million to Improve Access to Community-Based Maternal Support Services for Pregnant and Post-partum People]( September 27, 2023 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Minority Health (OMH) announced that it has awarded more than $13 million in grants to 11 organizations for its Healthy Families Community-Based Perinatal Health Initiative (COPHI) to develop innovative models for integrating community-based maternal support services into perinatal systems of care. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra Statement on the 50th Anniversary of Signing of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973]( September 26, 2023 Fifty years ago, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Rehab Act) was signed into law, marking a turning point in our nation’s civil rights history. The Rehab Act authorized services that support disabled people in living the lives they want to lead, fully included in their communities. The law established accessibility standards for information technology, which are crucial in today’s high-tech world, and more. [Read the full release »]( [HHS Secretary Becerra and HHS Principals Statements on World Cancer Research Day]( September 25, 2023 Cancer touches every American in some way, and is still the second leading cause of death in America. The President and First Lady reignited the Biden Cancer Moonshot to dramatically accelerate progress in the fight against cancer and mobilize a national effort to end cancer as we know it. [Read the full release »]( [Biden-Harris Administration Announces More Than $200 Million To Support Youth Mental Health]( September 25, 2023 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), announced $206 million in grant awards towards youth mental health. [Read the full release »]( [See More News Releases]( [Module 2 - Photo]( Selecting a Primary Care Physician When selecting a primary care physician for yourself or someone you love, it’s important to choose a provider that not only fits your needs but is someone you can trust and rely on. When you feel like you and your doctor are on the same page, it can make a world of a difference. [Learn more »]( [Footer Logo]( U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 200 Independence Avenue, S.W. 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