REGISTER: IHA Leadership Summit on Navigating Disruption Oct. 1-2
Grant Opportunities: HRSA Funding to Support Maternal and Child Health
APPLY: OUD Treatment Fellowship ECHO Program
ACCESS Resource Supports Medicare Beneficiaries with Chronic Conditions
Illinois Respiratory Disease Surveillance Data
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REGISTER: IHA Leadership Summit on Navigating Disruption Oct. 1-2
With disruption dominating society, healthcare leaders face new challenges as accelerating technologies and dramatic health policy shifts combine with persistent financial and workforce pressures. The 2026 IHA Leadership Summit—“Navigating Disruption Together”—will bring these issues to the forefront with expert insights and peer perspectives to guide your organizational response.
Registration is now open for this IHA signature event, held Oct. 1-2 at the Hilton Chicago/Oak Brook Hills Resort & Conference Center. The Summit is designed for hospital and health system leadership teams, including C-Suite executives, trustees, and clinical and department leaders.
Sessions are designed to clarify the path ahead and provide proactive approaches to strengthen hospital sustainability. These include:
“The Choice Ahead: Own Your Future or Be Disrupted by It,” by Scott Anthony, Dartmouth College Clinical Professor of Strategy and Craig Deao, Huron Managing Director;
“The Choice Ahead” CEO panel answering the question of “so now what?” in a wide-ranging, candid discussion on discipline, policy and investment;
“Navigating Federal Health Policy: A Fireside Chat with AHA's Rick Pollack” on federal issues impacting access to care, health coverage, the healthcare workforce and hospital operations; and
“Public Perception and the Importance of Telling Your Hospital’s Story” by Michael Hildebrand, Senior Vice President, Public, Community and Rural Health Systems Practice Deputy with Jarrard Inc.
You’ll also benefit from the President’s Address by IHA President and CEO A.J. Wilhelmi and breakout sessions led by IHA members and IHA Corporate Partners. Registration discounts are available through Sept. 17. Discounted room rates at the Hilton Chicago/Oak Brook Hills Resort & Conference Center, are available through Aug. 31. Register today.
Grant Opportunities: HRSA Funding to Support Maternal and Child Health
The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Maternal and Child Health Bureau recently announced grant opportunities to support maternal and child health initiatives. The Maternal Produce Prescription Program (MP3) offers funding support for the development and implementation of community-based produce prescription programs and related nutrition education for maternal populations at risk of poor health outcomes due to nutrition insecurity and other health-related factors. Grants are also available for the Regional Pediatric Prevention Network (RPPN) to provide funding to hospitals working on advancing pediatric emergency and disaster preparedness locally, regionally, and nationally, including for children with special healthcare needs and behavioral health concerns; children living in poverty; and children in rural, remote, and tribal areas. The network will include at least 10 children’s hospitals, and university pediatric and community partners. Interested applicants must apply by July 17 for the MP3 and RPPN programs.
Funding is also available for the Maternal Health Emergency Management Training (MHEMT) program, which seeks to increase capacity and improve the quality of care provided by clinicians and first responders who encounter pregnant and postpartum women in nondelivery and/or low-resource clinical settings. The deadline to apply for the MHEMT program is July 20.
APPLY: OUD Treatment Fellowship ECHO Program
The OUD Treatment Fellowship ECHO program is designed to train Illinois primary care providers, including physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants, in the assessment and treatment of opioid use disorders (OUD) in their clinical settings. The seven-month fellowship will provide not only clinical guidance but also technical support around the clinical workflows, policies, and protocols to ensure compliance with clinical standards and evidence-based practice. Upon full completion, each participant will receive a certificate and approximately 40 hours of continuing education credits. Click here for more details, including eligibility and registration information. The application is due on June 26.
ACCESS Resource Supports Medicare Beneficiaries with Chronic Conditions
As the agricultural fair season takes off in Illinois with over 50 fairs scheduled between May and August, the Illinois Dept. of Public Health (IDPH) recently issued a health advisory to provide background on the variant and novel influenza viruses that may occur in birds, cattle, or swine and risk of spread to humans at agricultural fairs. The notice also emphasized that influenza testing and subtyping for human specimens is available at IDPH labs if novel or variant influenza is suspected. IDPH said testing is encouraged if influenza occurs outside of the normal influenza season, especially if exposure is noted to birds, dairy cattle, or swine.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has updated the “Early Alert: Heart Pump Controller Issues from Abiomed” communication. The Early Alert has been confirmed as a Class I recall, and the reason for the recall has been updated for clarity. The affected products and recommendations for what to do with the devices have not changed. As of April 27, Abiomed has reported two serious injuries and one death associated with this issue.
Across Illinois, 19 hospitals — mostly safety net hospitals like West Suburban and Weiss — owed the state nearly $705 million in taxes, penalties and advance payments, as of earlier this year, according to information obtained from the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services through Freedom of Information Act requests. Safety net hospital leaders, however, say the debts are symptomatic of the challenges they face in serving vulnerable communities that rely on the facilities for care and employment.
Wildly varying prices for the same procedure are emblematic of a medical pricing system that some say is far too complicated and the result of secret negotiations between hospitals and insurance companies that occur before patients even walk in the door.
Eli Lilly has begun denying 340B drug discounts to hospitals that have not submitted claims-level data under its reporting requirements, according to a June 18 news release from the American Hospital Association.
