CHAD Connection

This year marks a significant milestone for CHAD—our 40th anniversary as the Primary Care Association serving health centers across North Dakota and South Dakota. Since 1985, CHAD has worked hand-in-hand with health centers to ensure that every community, no matter how rural or urban, has access to affordable, high-quality, and reliable health care.

To celebrate this anniversary, CHAD staff gathered for two days of reflection, collaboration, and community. The first day began with a look back at CHAD’s history through photos, logos, and stories that have shaped our journey. A panel of past and long-serving staff shared their perspectives, offering valuable insights into how CHAD has evolved while staying true to its mission.

H.R.1 (the One Big Beautiful Bill Act) establishes a new Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) under the administration of CMS. Through this fund, each state is expected to receive a minimum of $100 million per year to improve rural health care access, quality, and sustainability. Further guidance is expected from CMS in September, with some estimating a 6-week turnaround for states to submit their applications. CHAD is engaging with health center leaders, partners, and state officials to proactively plan and gather ideas for how these funds can positively impact rural health in North Dakota and South Dakota.

The North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has launched a request for information survey to gather public feedback on how the state could leverage the RHTP to build a stronger, more sustainable rural health care system. They are accepting survey responses until September 12. While CHAD is working to identify and submit network-wide ideas, health centers can also submit individual ideas through the survey.

As students return to classrooms this fall, health centers play a critical role in preventing vaccine-preventable illnesses that can disrupt learning and strain families. The back-to-school period is an ideal time to boost immunization rates, engage families, and strengthen community partnerships.

High-volume contact environments such as classrooms, sports teams, and after-school programs accelerate the spread of influenza, coronavirus, meningitis, and other communicable diseases. Immunization before peak season not only protects individual patients but also reduces absenteeism, helps maintain consistent learning environments, and supports overall community health.

The National Association of Community Health Centers recently released a guide that outlines requirements and best practices for health center board composition, board member recruitment and orientation resources.

HRSA outlines specific requirements for health center boards of directors, including:

Majority (at least 51%) of board members must be patients served by the health center;

Health center board members must, as a group, represent the individuals who are served by the health center in terms of demographic factors, such as race, ethnicity and sex.

Boards have at least nine but no more than 25 members;

Health center bylaws outline the process for selecting and removing board members.

CHAD has short, on-demand trainings available on its website to support board development. You can access CHAD’s repository of board resources here.

The ND Medical Association is accepting nominations for three awards recognizing outstanding contributions to medicine. Awards will be presented at the NDMA Fall Meeting, October 2–3 in Fargo. Nominations are due August 31.

Physician Community & Professional Award – for an NDMA physician showing exceptional leadership and service.
Friend of Medicine Award – for a non-physician advocate for health care and the profession of medicine.
Copic Humanitarian Award – for an NDMA physician providing volunteer medical service; recipient directs a $10,000 donation to a health care nonprofit.

To nominate someone for the Physician Community & Professional Award or the Friend of Medicine Award, download the form here. To nominate someone for the Copic Humanitarian Award, complete the form here.

Registration is open for the NDMA Fall Meeting here.

Community Health Centers. Unfiltered. is the official podcast of Advocates for Community Health, where the hosts dive deep into the policy, politics, and people shaping the future of America’s health care safety net.

Hosted by ACH CEO Amanda Pears Kelly, each episode strips away the jargon to deliver honest conversations with policymakers, community leaders, and health center champions on the frontlines. From Capitol Hill to local neighborhoods, they explore how community health centers are driving change, expanding access, and standing up for a healthier America.

The Community Health Worker Collaborative of South Dakota has announced the launch of the South Dakota Community Health Worker (CHW) Registered Apprenticeship Opportunity—a new pathway for CHWs to gain hands-on experience, receive professional training, and make a lasting impact in your community.

Through this new program, the South Dakota Department of Labor & Regulation will cover the cost of the approved CHW training program tuition, related textbooks, and a small stipend throughout the year for each registered apprentice and journey worker.

Enhancing Colorectal Cancer Screening in Underserved Communities with DRVS

Colorectal cancer screening remains a critical issue, particularly in underserved and rural communities, where access to health care, awareness, and timely screening are often limited. Overcoming these challenges requires proactive health care engagement and empowering individuals through education and accessible screening options. Join us as Southern West Virginia Health System shares how to utilize DRVS to identify patients due for screenings and track outcomes. This session will highlight how Azara’s tools are improving cancer prevention efforts in both regions, fostering collaboration among healthcare teams, and empowering patients to take proactive steps in their care.

Tuesday, August 26

12:00 pm CT / 11:00 am MT

Class is in Session: DRVS for School-Based Health

School-based health centers play a key role in improving educational and health outcomes and serve as an ‘upstream’ approach to preparing youth for successful adulthood. However, many organizations struggle with getting and using data that can drive creative programming in their school-based centers. With a focus on data transparency, school-based data can promote collaboration between the school, the larger community, and health center providers to target the needs of school-aged children. Don’t get caught ‘after the bell’, join this session to learn more about the data tools you have available to help share both your challenges and successes. This webinar is recommended for team members working to support school-based programming.

Thursday, August 28

1:00 pm CT / 12:00 pm MT

Session 1: Operationalizing Value-Based Care: An Interactive Series with DRVS

As value-based care (VBC) continues to gain traction across CMS, Medicaid, and commercial payers, health centers are presented with an important opportunity to align care delivery with quality, cost, and patient outcomes. Success in this landscape requires more than intention—it calls for strategic alignment across teams, workflows, and data systems.

This interactive webinar series with Azara experts is designed to equip participants with the knowledge and tools needed to build and operate an effective VBC strategy. The series begins with a high-level overview of the current VBC environment, outlining key success factors and practical approaches to developing a strong, data-informed foundation.

Thursday, September 4

1:00 pm CT / 12:00 pm MT