COVID-19: Resources for Health Care Providers

  • PCDC COVID-19 Financing Support Options

    The operational impact of COVID-19 on primary care and behavioral health providers have had an unprecedented impact on health centers’ financial sustainability: staff furloughs, site closures, clinical conversion to telehealth, investments in PPE, capital upgrades and site redesigns, etc., have resulted in an enormous and unplanned drain on capital resources and liquidity. While government programs have been a source of support for many primary care and behavioral health providers, not all have been eligible and those that have received support have been challenged to appropriately apply funds.

    PCDC’s financing programs are supporting primary care and behavioral health providers during this time of crisis. By utilizing a mix of low-cost and flexible programs, centers can maintain or increase their liquidity by allowing organizations to retain their own cash while maintaining or even expanding current operations:

    • PCDC’s Resiliency Fund
      For NYS’ Article 31 and 32 providers, PCDC’s Behavioral Health Resiliency Fund can provide up to $500,000 as working capital to finance previous or anticipated investments, to help these organizations emerge from the pandemic and prepare to expand to meet the growing needs in their communities. Supported investments include ongoing PPE needs, HVAC equipment, physical redesign, staff training, service expansion and integration, etc. Interest rates start at 2%.
    • New York State Fund
      For primary care and behavioral health providers in New York State, PCDC’s NYS Fund provides financing for planned or commenced projects. Using this low-cost financing will minimize the cash outlay into the project and maximize the center’s liquidity for operations. Loans are up to $6 million with interest rates of 4%.
    • Capital Financing
      Nationwide, PCDC provides primary care and behavioral health organizations with flexible financing to minimize their own cash investments into projects, thus preserving liquidity during this crisis. Money can be used for pre-development, acquisition, construction and permanent financing, as well as equity refinancing, site renovation and capital equipment financing. Bridge loans are also available to move projects forward in anticipation of grants, fundraising or even larger permanent financing programs, including New Markets Tax Credits. PCDC’s flexible terms and structures include interest-only payments on bridge loans, and long amortization periods and no-penalty prepayment options on longer-termed facilities.

  • COVID-19 Webinars, Trainings, Events

    PCDC has hosted a series of webinars to help providers and community health centers navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics include implementing telehealth, developing reopening plans, addressing key issues affecting primary care, and more.

    • PCDC Virtual Town Hall: The Impact of COVID-19 on Health Care Providers and Organizations
      PCDC’s 90-minute virtual town hall provided a forum for providers to share information and ideas for making complex decisions, integrating rapidly changing clinical guidelines, exploring the impact of health disparities on health outcomes, addressing staff burnout, and sustaining health center operations.
    • Primary Care in COVID-19 Relief, Response, Resiliency Webinar Series
      In a three-part webinar series, Primary Care Development Corporation (PCDC) and special guests discussed COVID-19’s impact on the primary care sector and what primary care’s role should be in COVID-19 relief, response, and resiliency. Watch recordings.
    • COVID-19 Telehealth and Telemedicine Webinar Series
      PCDC’s Telehealth and Telemedicine Webinar Series includes deploying standalone and integrated solutions, retooling scheduling, panel management, and population health processes, improving telephonic/virtual communication, and enhancing billing and coding practices.
    • NYC COVID-19 Resiliency Support and Technical Assistance
      PCDC is offering a four-part webinar series to support primary care practices across New York City as they adjust their processes to best respond to the needs of their patients during this challenging time.
    • Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in the “New Normal”
      This webinar will share the latest information on recognizing Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and adapting those practices within our “new normal,” including how to utilize screening tools, responsive approaches, and engaging with survivors. It features an expert from the IPV field in New York City with years of experience supporting survivors and training health care providers, law enforcement, and social service teams on their respective roles. Watch recording.
    • Primary Care, COVID-19, and Community Health
      PCDC, Assembly Health Committee Chair Richard Gottfried, Senate Health Committee Chair Gustavo Rivera, community health providers, and policy leaders discuss how COVID-19 has exacerbated health disparities and increased challenges to accessing and delivering primary care services including vaccinations, disease screening and management, and other preventative care. The conversation will provide insights into key policy strategies to make smart investments in primary care to keep our communities healthy while increasing health care affordability and access as New York emerges from the pandemic. Watch recording.
    • PCDC-CHCANYS COVID-19 Community Health Care Resiliency Fund Webinar
      PCDC and Community Health Care Association of New York State (CHCANYS) examine how the $10 million fund and technical assistance can help health centers make the investments and operational enhancements needed to serve their communities through the COVID-19 crisis and recovery. Watch recording.
    • City & State: The State of Health Care in New York
      A panel of experts discuss forward-looking measures that are happening right now such as controlling the spread of the pandemic through tracing, as well as how New York has and will respond to future urgent health crises, best practices for data security, and more. Watch recording.
    • Crain’s Health Pulse: Life After COVID-19: How the Pandemic Will Change Health Care
      As the health care community wrestles with arguably the most devastating outbreak in its history, the question arises: What long-term effects will COVID-19 have on health care in the tri-state area? In this special Crain’s Health Pulse event co-sponsored by PCDC, top health care professionals discuss their biggest takeaways from the pandemic and what they foresee happening in the future. Watch recording.
    • Crain’s Health Pulse: What COVID-19 Taught us about Underserved Communities in Health Care
      Covid-19 has disproportionately impacted Black and Hispanic who have suffered higher rates of infection and mortality. These alarming trends showcase how essential it is to address gaps in health care. This webinar will discuss the pressing need to collect and evaluate Covid-19 data to ensure everyone has access to the resources they need, as well as better insight into how to meet the needs of certain communities. Watch recording.

  • Telemedicine Resources, Training, and Technical Assistance

    Telemedicine is one solution that can sustain communities’ access to care and providers’ access to revenue throughout the pandemic. PCDC is available to provide technical assistance on initiating and sustaining telehealth services, including deploying standalone and integrated solutions, retooling scheduling, panel management, and population health processes, improving telephonic/virtual communication, and enhancing billing and coding practices. For financing needs, PCDC’s Transformation Loan Fund enables health centers and other community-based health care organizations to undertake critical investments that support new delivery and payment models, including implementing and sustaining telehealth programs.

    • Maximizing the Delivery of Telehealth Services: mHealth, Workflow Considerations, Reimbursement, and Webside Manner
      In this webinar, PCDC experts define telehealth vs. telemedicine; clarify patient and provider eligibility for telemedicine encounters; outline changes to billing codes and documentation requirements; discuss motivational interviewing strategies; and cover types of telehealth encounters and solutions, among other highlights.
      Watch the recording.
    • How to Select a Telehealth Vendor
      PCDC offers tips on how to select a telehealth vendor, including the functionality of telehealth, total cost to implement, and how it captures patient medical history and vitals. Download the resource.
    • Communication Strategies for Telehealth
      PCDC’s quick step-by-step guide to effective communication strategies for telehealth, including suggested prompts for how to establish rapport with patients, adapt listening skills for the platform, utilize a person-centered approach, and more. Download the resource.
    • Telehealth Workflow
      This infographic outlines the telehealth workflow in six steps – from selecting a telehealth vendor to documenting patient consent to conducting a rapid assessment and more.
    • Telehealth for You – Patient Flyer
      This telehealth informational flyer for patients includes tips on how to prepare for a telehealth visit and info on what happens during a telehealth visit.
    • #PrimaryCareCOVIDChat on Telehealth
      PCDC joined 26 leading health care organizations to launch #PrimaryCareCOVIDChat on Twitter, a recurring conversation about challenges facing primary care practices and practitioners in the time of COVID-19. Review highlights from the Twitter chat on Telehealth.

  • COVID-19 Downloadable Resources

    PCDC has produced COVID-19 resources that can be found below.

    • COVID-19 Virtual Town Hall Slides and Resources
      PCDC’s Virtual Town Hall on the impact of COVID-19 on health care providers and organizations provided a forum for providers to share information and ideas for making complex decisions, integrating rapidly changing clinical guidelines, exploring the impact of health disparities on health outcomes, addressing staff burnout, and sustaining health center operations. Download the resource.
    • Points on Care: COVID-19 and Chronic Disease Deepen Health Disparities for Many New Yorkers
      The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened inequities in health outcomes and access to care across the United States. In the virus’ epicenter, New York City neighborhoods with higher rates of chronic disease and a higher proportion of black and low-income residents have disproportionately high rates of COVID-19. Many of these same neighborhoods also have poor access to primary care. However, need for primary care is expected to increase significantly following the pandemic, particularly in the communities with disparities in acute and chronic illness. Rapid and responsible investment in the primary care system will play a critical role in mitigating the growth of health disparities in NYC, helping ensure recovery and resiliency in these communities. Download the resource.
    • Maximizing Telemedicine to Meet Patient and Practice Needs – Webinar Slides
      In this webinar, PCDC experts define telehealth vs. telemedicine; clarify patient and provider eligibility for telemedicine encounters; outline changes to billing codes and documentation requirements; discuss motivational interviewing strategies; and cover types of telehealth encounters and solutions, among other highlights.
    • How to Select a Telehealth Vendor
      PCDC offers tips on how to select a telehealth vendor, including the functionality of telehealth, total cost to implement, and how it captures patient medical history and vitals. Download the resource.
    • Communication Strategies for Telehealth
      PCDC’s quick step-by-step guide to effective communication strategies for telehealth, including suggested prompts for how to establish rapport with patients, adapt listening skills for the platform, utilize a person-centered approach, and more. Download the resource.
    • Telehealth Workflow
      This infographic outlines the telehealth workflow in six steps – from selecting a telehealth vendor to documenting patient consent to conducting a rapid assessment and more.
    • Telehealth for You – Patient Flyer
      This telehealth informational flyer for patients includes tips on how to prepare for a telehealth visit and info on what happens during a telehealth visit.

  • COVID-19 Policy Issues

    The COVID-19 pandemic presents exceptional challenges to health care workers and the health system as a whole. It has strained the provider community and shined a bright light on the U.S. health care system — both its strengths and weaknesses. The fragility of the primary care payment system has been demonstrated while our primary care providers have shown unparalleled strength in the face of unprecedented challenges. This crisis has also laid bare the racial disparities that continue to persist across our nation. PCDC believes a strong primary care infrastructure is a necessary first step towards reckoning with the stark reality we face today. We believe the pandemic presents an opportunity for meaningful policy change. A health system rooted in primary care, with highly functioning hospitals and close collaborations with public health, will strengthen our country’s ability to address and manage future threats and achieve health equity.

    • Promote Primary Care Utilization: Use outreach and education to promote utilization of primary care to maintain prevention and management of chronic conditions.
    • Implement Prospective Payments Across All Payers: Require up front payment to providers across all payers.
    • Designate More Federal Aid for Primary Care: Include designated funds for primary care providers in federal stimulus.
    • Promote Public-Private Partnerships: Convene public-private partnerships to deploy capital loans and grants to communities that need it most.
    • Maintain Telehealth Regulatory Flexibility: Make telehealth payment parity and regulatory flexibility permanent.
    • Invest in Primary Care: Rebalance health care spending by defining, measuring, and increasing investment in primary care.

  • #PrimaryCareCOVIDChat Twitter Series

    PCDC joined Mathematica and 25 leading health care organizations to launch #PrimaryCareCOVIDChat on Twitter, a recurring conversation about challenges facing primary care practices and practitioners in the time of COVID-19. Review highlights from the Twitter chats with PCDC experts below:

  • COVID-19 Research

    The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened inequities in health outcomes and access to care across the United States. In the virus’ epicenter, New York City neighborhoods with higher rates of chronic disease and a higher proportion of black and low-income residents have disproportionately high rates of COVID-19. Many of these same neighborhoods also have poor access to primary care. However, need for primary care is expected to increase significantly following the pandemic, particularly in the communities with disparities in acute and chronic illness. Rapid and responsible investment in the primary care system will play a critical role in mitigating the growth of health disparities in NYC, helping ensure recovery and resiliency in these communities. Learn more.

  • NYC COVID-19 Resiliency Support and Technical Assistance

    The COVID-19 public health crisis has had an unprecedented impact on primary care practices across the country and throughout New York City. PCDC is offering a four-part webinar series to support primary care practices across New York City as they adjust their processes to best respond to the needs of their patients during this challenging time.