Author: Kady Pecorella

On January 30^th, IPHI hosted the first Community Health Worker (CHW) Advocacy Day at the Virginia General Assembly in Richmond, VA. Thirty participants from around the state attended the event and met with 20 legislators or their staff. Using pre-scripted talking points, they spent 10-15 minutes talking about CHWs’ work and how critical they are to improving health care quality, improving health and eliminating health disparities, and reducing healthcare costs.

They also specifically asked for support for Senate Bill 1557, submitted by Senator George Barker, for the Virginia Department of Health to be recognized as a Working Group to move forward efforts including certifying CHWs, supporting policies, and increasing the sustainability of CHWs through payment systems for CHWs as a part of an integrated health care team. While the Bill ultimately didn’t pass, this was an extremely successful day and raised much needed awareness for CHWs and the important work they do. We hope next year’s event will be bigger and better!!

On Thursday, January 26th IPHI will hold an open meeting in Richmond, VA to discuss providing support for anticipated state legislation that would legalize syringe access in Virginia.

Syringe exchange and other syringe access and harm reduction programs help curb the spread of HIV and Hepatitis C, and can serve as critical access points to health screening, drug treatment, overdose prevention, medical care and other support services for populations facing many health and safety risks. Growing attention to addiction and the surge in opioid overdose in Virginia and across the country may provide a new level of awareness that can finally enable legal support in Virginia.

The purpose of this meeting will be to identify a core group of organizations and individuals willing to assist in educating elected officials and to serve as a collective resource as we move forward toward implementation of syringe access.