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Office of Primary Care

Overview

Primary Health Care Services include care given on initial contact and in the ambulatory setting, such as treatment for acute diseases, managing chronic diseases, continuity of care, using preventative measures, teaching, and employing an understanding of emotional and social factors in the assessment and intervention for each individual patient. Primary Care encompasses all stages of life and consists of five major components:

  1. Accessibility
  2. Accountability
  3. Comprehensive Care
  4. Coordinated/Continuous Care
  5. Health Promotion and Disease Prevention

All components must be met to provide primary health care in Nurse Managed Clinics (NMC), Rural Health Care/Training Centers (RHC/TC), Rural Health Clinics (RHC), Community Health Centers (CHC), and other types of care.

  • Community Health Centers

    Community Health Centers (CHCs), also known as Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), serve as invaluable resources in expanding access to essential primary healthcare services by addressing barriers such as cost, lack of insurance, distance, and language. These centers yield significant advantages to both the nation and its healthcare system by working towards equitable access to care, promoting preventive services, and ultimately improving overall health outcomes for individuals and communities. The Office of Primary Care administers the State Community Health Center Operating Grant.

  • Indiana Primary Care Learning Collaborative

    The Indiana Primary Care Learning Collaborative brings together a large number of teams from hospitals or clinics to learn from each other and the content experts on how to improve in specific areas.

  • Primary Care Cooperative Agreement

    The Primary Care Cooperative Agreement is supported by the United States Department of Health and Human Services in the Bureau of Health Workforce. The Cooperative Agreement supports the Indiana Primary Care Office to provide healthcare workforce and shortage designation analysis, technical assistances, and liaison with federal, state, and local partners.

    Activities of the Primary Care Office include but are not limited to:

    • Conducting a statewide community needs assessment
    • Coordinating the HPSA and MUA/P designation processes
    • Collecting and recording provider data
    • Providing technical assistance and collaboration to expand access to primary care, including coordination of NHSC programs and provider recruitment and retention
    • Collaborating with Health Center workforce planning and development
    • Collaborating with other HRSA partners and organizations to support access to primary care services

Shortage Designations

Shortage designations identify an area, population, or facility experiencing a shortage of health care services. Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA) can be geographic areas, populations, or facilities that indicate shortages of primary, dental, or mental health care practitioners. Medically Underserved Areas/Populations (MUA/P) identify geographic areas and populations with a lack of access to primary care services and help establish health maintenance organizations or community health centers. The Bureau of Health Workforce (BHW) within the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is responsible for the designation process.

The Indiana Office of Primary Care submits new HPSA and MUA/P designation applications and updates to BHW. The Office of Primary Care must be contacted to request a shortage designation and is the only entity that can submit a designation request to HRSA. Requests are free and can be made by anyone.

Federal programs supported by HPSAs:

  • National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Loan Repayment Programs and Scholarships
  • Rural Health Clinics
  • Medicare Incentive Payments
  • J-1 Visa Waiver Physician

Federal opportunities supported by MUAs/Ps:

  • Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) grants for the planning, development, or operation of community health centers under Section 330 of the Public Health Service Act.
  • FQHC Look-Alikes (FQHC LAL) which meet the definition of community health center but do not receive HRSA Health Center Program funding. FQHC LALs receive some of the same benefits as FQHCs.
  • J-1 Visa Waiver Physician Program

Shortage designation status can be checked using HRSA’s Find Shortage Areas by Address tool.

The Indiana State Loan Repayment Program (IN-SLRP) is a workforce retention program that provides student loan repayment to health professionals to encourage the full-time delivery of primary care, mental, and dental healthcare services at practices located in federally designated health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) in Indiana. HPSAs are geographic areas, population groups, or healthcare facilities that have been designated by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) as having a shortage of health professionals.

In exchange for a two-year service commitment, IN-SLRP recipients can receive up to $20,000 to repay their outstanding student loans. Participants may reapply for the program once; in this case, they could receive up to an additional $20,000 for an additional two-year service commitment, for a total of up to $40,000 for four years of service.

The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Scholarship and Loan Repayment Programs are competitive federal programs that provide service-obligated scholarships and loan repayment to assist in the development, recruitment, and retention of primary care providers to serve people in health professional shortage areas (HPSA).

The Office of Primary Care provides technical assistance and application support to potential and current NHSC sites.

Contact

Gabby Long
Office of Primary Care Manager
glong@health.in.gov

The Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security grants J-1 visa waivers after a review by the US State Department. IDOH may recommend 30 waivers a year for J-1 physicians who otherwise must return to their home country for a period of two years after completing graduate medical studies. The recipients are obligated to three years of service in a designated underserved area (HPSA or MUA/P).

Essential forms and waiver requirements:

Contact

Natalie Morrison, MPH
Indiana Primary Health Care Association
429 N. Pennsylvania St, Suite 333
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Ph: (765) 918-4431 / Fax: (317) 630-0849
nmorrison@indianapca.org

IDOH will issue recommendation letters for National Interest Waivers (NIW). The Indiana Primary Care Office requires the following to issue a NIW recommendation letter:

  • A contract spanning five years of qualifying service (full-time, 40 hours/week) in a designated shortage area (HPSA or MUA/P).
    • The contract must be signed by the employer and the NIW candidate.
    • The contract cannot contain a non-compete clause.
    • Previous qualifying service (excluding the J-1 required service) can be counted as part of the five years.
    • If the applicant does not have a five-year contract for one location, documentation must be submitted for qualifying service.
  • A copy of the H-1 visa approval notice.
  • A copy of the J-1 visa waiver, if applicable.

Please send documents in a PDF version via email to:

Gabby Long
Office of Primary Care Manager
glong@health.in.gov
CC: Valerie Barrett, vbarrett@health.in.gov

The Office of Primary Care will issue Shortage Designation Verification Memos for the purpose of RHC certification. The Office of Primary Care requires the following to verify shortage designation status:

  • Name of facility
  • Address of facility
  • Name, job title/relation to the facility, phone number, and email of the individual requesting the memo

Please send requests via email to:

Gabby Long
Office of Primary Care Manager
glong@health.in.gov

Contact

Ann M. Alley
Director
(317) 233-7451
aalley@health.in.gov

Brent Anderson
Practice Coach
(317) 233-7257
branderson@health.in.gov

Gabby Long
Office of Primary Care Manager
(317) 234-5673
glong@health.in.gov