This week from OCHE & Partners

From OCHE & BSAS

🗓️           OCHE’s next Community Office Hours on Monday, July 27 from 10am-12pmwill feature BSAS’ Trans & Gender Expansive Community Advisory Board (TGE CAB) sharing about the work they’re doing through our partnership, including an introduction to best practices for serving gender expansive clients in substance use treatment settings. Stayed tuned for a flyer coming soon, and register here to join us!

🤝           International Overdose Awareness Day takes place every August 31, with events happening statewide leading up to this date. If you’d like to join us at the event BSAS, Boston Medical Center, and Boston host on the Boston Common please save the date of 8/31 and stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks. In the meantime, you can find or add other events on SADOD’s IOAD Calendar.

🗣️           At the State of the Commonwealth address in January, Governor Healey announced that the administration will be advancing regulations regarding restrictions on medical debt reporting to consumer reporting agencies.  The Department of Public Health (DPH) is putting forward two proposed regulations for public comment related to medical debt reporting:

• 105 CMR 95.00, Requirements Applicable to All Health Care Facilities and Providers Licensed by the Department of Public Health
• 140 CMR 2.00, Requirements Applicable to All Health Care Providers Licensed by Boards Within the Department of Public Health

We encourage your engagement in reviewing and submitting feedback on the proposed regulations when the public comment period opens, and all details will be posted here.

From our partners

🗓️           Join the Opioid Response Network (ORN) and the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) for an informational webinar focused on how social workers can partner with ORN to strengthen substance use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery. Social Work and the Opioid Response Network: Partnering to Enhance SUD Services takes place on June 29 from 2-3pm. Learn more and register here.

🗓️           High Point Treatment Center welcomes community partners to BIPOC Mental Health Awareness Night at the Brockton Rox baseball game on July 1 from 5-8pm. Tickets are required to enter, but 50 free tickets are still available as of today. See the attached flyer to get your tickets!

🗓️           United Communities and Boston Public Library invite you to a Local Black Author Talk on July 7 from 3-5:45pm at the Shaw-Roxbury Library. See attached for more information, and register here to attend or request accommodations. Whether or not you’re able to join, you can learn more about authors featured in this series and their books here.

🗓️           Voice of the Gospel Tabernacle Church in Mattapan will host a Youth Mental Health Community Workshop on July 18 at 9:30am. See the attached flyers for details to attend or get involved as a panelist or to host a resource table.

🗓️           The Statewide Young Adult Council (SYAC), situated under the MA Department of Mental Health and in partnership with other organizations, invites you to a Young Adult Advocacy Day on July 27 from 10am-2:30pm in Worcester. See the attached flyer for more details, and contact youthmovema@ppal.net with any questions.

💡  Dr. Sheila Vakharia of the Drug Policy Alliance, and author of The Harm Reduction Gap, is preparing to release her next book titled The Case for a Harm Reduction Approach: Beyond One-Size-Fits-All Addiction Treatment in 2027. Sign up here to receive updates as they’re available, or to express interest in hosting a book talk in your community. We’re excited to welcome her to OCHE Community Office Hours once the book is out so you can learn more!

⚠️           MA Department of Public Health has released an alert related to a public health advisory announcing a nationwide recall of all Nara Organics powdered infant formula due to dangerous contamination. Please share with any caregivers or providers who may serve families using this product.

⚠️           DPH also issued an extreme heat alert in Massachusetts for the next seven days. You can find information and resources to keep yourself and others safe during high temperatures here.

🤝           The William James College Skills Training for Equitable Pathways (STEP) Program and Community Health Workers (CHW) Training Program are both recruiting for their next cohorts to build skills and capacity among workforce members with a range of interests and experience levels. See the attached flyers for more information and eligibility requirements.

🤝           Also in partnership with William James College, the Haitian Mental Health Network offers a variety of ways to connect and seek or offer culturally responsive support, including participation in their Behavioral Health & Wellbeing Task Force. See attached for details, and contact gina_benjamin@williamjames.edu with any questions.

🗣️           A message from Micah Webster of Brandeis University for 18-30 years olds with a serious mental health condition and history of excessive alcohol use: Would you like to contribute to our understanding of the relationship between loneliness, mental health, and alcohol use among young adults? Please consider filling out this short survey to see if you’re eligible to interview about these topics with a researcher and young adult with lived experience. If you are selected to participate in a 60-minute interview, you will be compensated $30. Please see the attached flyer for details and contact Micah Webster at 978-501-5013 or micahwebster@brandeis.edu.

🗣️           The We-Rise Study at Fenway Health, in partnership with Boston Medical Center and the Behavioral Health Equity Program, invites Black adult women who use or have used drugs to participate in a research interview, which will compensate $50. During the interview, participants will be asked about their experiences finding and accessing substance use treatment and their thoughts on how programs can be improved. See the attached flyer for information and contact  WeRISEStudy@fenwayhealth.org with any questions.

💰           From our friends on the Root Cause Solutions Exchange Civic Roundtable: The Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation is pleased to announce a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the OB3 Impacts Defense Fund – Mitigating Coverage Loss. This grant opportunity is focused on mitigating potential MassHealth coverage losses resulting from new federal requirements stemming from the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (known as “OB3”). Join the Civic Roundtable (for free!) and learn more here.