Notice of Privacy Practices: Required Update |
During the Georgia Spring Conference Legal Update, attorney Michele Madison emphasized the importance of ensuring hospital Notices of Privacy Practices (NPPs) are updated to reflect recent federal changes related to 42 CFR Part 2 / Substance Use Disorder (SUD) records. These updates were effective February 16, 2026, and hospitals should confirm the language below is included in their current NPP.
Please review your NPP to ensure it includes the required language related to SUD disclosures and related requirements. The NPP is the notice provided to every patient and must be posted in the facility, available on the website, and (for some facilities) included in the admission packet. -
Key points to confirm in your NPP:
- Required language addressing SUD record disclosures (per the federal update).
- Clear language about fundraising communications involving SUD information, including the patient’s ability to opt out.
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Georgia-specific language noting that mental health/SUD (and other “super confidential”) records require a specific authorization, not just a general consent.
February 16, 2026 – Update HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices to include new requirements for Substance Use Disorder Records. Insert for NPP: “In the case of fundraising: We may contact you for fundraising efforts, but you can tell us not to contact you again. If we have your substance use disorder patient records, subject to 42 CFR part 2, we will give you clear and obvious notice in advance and a choice about whether to receive fundraising communications that use your Part 2 information.
To the extent that we have your substance use disorder patient records, subject to 42 CFR part 2, we will not share that information for investigations or legal proceedings against you without (1) your written consent or (2) a court order and a subpoena. In all cases, if we have substance use disorder patient records about you, subject to 42 CFR part 2, we cannot use or share information in those records in civil, criminal, administrative, or legislative investigations or proceedings against you without (1) your consent or (2) a court order and a subpoena.”
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Florida Virtual Conference: July 14 |
Florida Rural Hospitals - Be sure to join us on July 14 starting at 9 am EDT
The 2026 Florida Virtual Conference will include state updates from the State Office of Rural Health & FRHA, Legal Updates from Michele Madison, AI & Rural Health insights with Dr. Tyler Wallace, Revenue Cycle strategy with Sandy Sage, RN and Leadership Impact training with Jessica Guy, MBA & Meghan Williams. Florida Rural Hospital attendees have more than SIX chances to take home a prize throughout the day thanks to our incredible Business Partners!
View the full agenda and get registered with your HTHU account today! |
Revenue Cycle Bootcamp: August 21
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Revenue Cycle Teams – Join the HomeTown team in Cordele for the 2026 Revenue Cycle Bootcamp. This year's bootcamp, led by Sandy Sage, RN and Rachel Savary, includes training centered on regulatory and compliance updates, contract negotiation, as well as staffing and productivity.
The Revenue Cycle Bootcamp is provided through the HomeTown SHIP Consortium. As such, the following organizations can attend with no registration costs: Appling | Clinch | Dodge | Flint River | Jefferson | Memorial & Manor | Optim Health – Tattnall | Taylor Regional | Warm Springs
Not one of these organizations but would like to attend? Contact Lauren Adair at lauren.adair@hometownhealthonline.com for more options.
Register for Bootcamp - Click Here |
Heads Up: Improved Interface & Webinars |
HTHU Dashboard Look | Webinars Move to Teams |
As HomeTown and HTHU continues in its commitment to serve rural healthcare partners through education and training, we want to share about two exciting updates that will impact your learning experience starting in July and throughout the fall. First, the HTHU user experience is getting a visual facelift, which includes some changes in menu location and minor design updates – but it does not impact your login credentials, login steps or available educational resources on HTHU.
Second, for our live webinar training events, we are moving away from the GoTo platform and moving to Microsoft Teams as our hosting platform. This does not impact your login credentials, login steps or available educational resources on HTHU – but does mean that once you ‘join’ a live session, you’ll be in a new webinar platform. There may be additional steps to join the webinar sessions using your Microsoft account once the platform is live for HTH webinars. For those of you who currently utilize Teams meetings, the webinar experience will be similar and of course, our team will be here to support all of you as you navigate through these two new interfaces and experiences.
Additional instructional notices will be sent out to HTHU users and webinar attendees as we approach the 'go live' window for both of these improvements. If you need any support during the transition times, please don't hesitate to reach out to hthtech@hometownhealthonline.com. |
HTHU: Summer Recertification Webinars |
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Revenue Cycle Professionals - make plans to attend the upcoming recertification webinars for 2026! Each webinar offers 90 minutes of industry updates, best practices, compliance reminders and education around key subject areas. Recertifications are designed to be taken annually for those who have previously completed the CHHS, PAC, PAS, Billing Certification, Billing Specialist and FCC!
HTHU Subscribers - Log in and find these webinars in the School of Revenue Cycle Management catalog to enroll today! Not a subscriber? Recordings will be posted for sale after the live sessions and visible for purchase in the School of Revenue Cycle Management approximately one week after the live session concludes. |
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Upcoming Webinars & Events Monthly Medicare Update July 8 | 10 AM EDT Florida Rural Hospital Virtual Conference
July 14| 9 AM EDT 2026 Billing Recertification with HTHU
July 14| 12:30 PM EDT
Free Webinar: Protecting Financial Sustainability in Rural & Critical Access Hospitals
July 17 | 10 am EDT Monthly GA Provider Reimbursement Webinar
August 5 | 10 AM EDT
Login at https://lms.hthu.net to register, enroll, attend live webinar sessions or view recordings of all webinar events! |
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Rural Transformation Resources |
HomeTown Health is committed to keeping you informed and empowered as Georgia embarks on the most significant rural health transformation in decades. We will continue to monitor developments and provide updates, resources and support to help your hospital maximize the benefits of these programs, as we also continue to partner with the Department of Community Health and others for guidance on next steps for participation in this program. Feel free to reach out to Kristy Thomson, COO with any questions.
Florida Rural Health Transformation Program Update: Georgia Rural Health Transformation Program Update: More in-depth insights will be disseminated via e-newsletter as available. |
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Free Webinar: July 17
Protecting Financial Sustainability in Rural & Critical Access Hospitals
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Insurance Capture | Precision Presumptive Charity Classification | ICTF & Directed Payment Optimization |
This webinar showcases how rural and Critical Access hospitals can strengthen financial sustainability by combining insurance discovery, presumptive charity/FAP classification, and reimbursement intelligence inside existing billing workflows.
The session will focus on how hospitals can protect reimbursement before it is lost by identifying missed Medicaid and other insurance coverage, improving charity/FAP accuracy, reducing avoidable bad debt, and supporting DSH, ICTF, directed-payment, and audit-readiness requirements. It will also include provider-class results and case-study examples from Effingham Health System and Jenkins County Medical Center. By the end of the session, participants will understand how to: - Identify missed Medicaid and other insurance coverage before accounts are written off or reclassified.
- Improve the accuracy of charity/FAP determinations using presumptive, policy-driven financial intelligence.
- Support DSH, ICTF, and directed-payment reimbursement with defensible audit detail.
- Reduce manual work by returning structured outputs into existing billing workflows.
- Understand the provider CFO/CEO perspective on operational value, reimbursement lift, workflow integration, and audit readiness.
Intended Audience:
CEO, COO, CFO, Revenue Cycle Directors, Billers Patient Financial Services; Patient Financial Counselors (Charity Care); and any Business partner involved in RCM Register Now |
Are You Receiving the Newsletter?
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If you are a facility with HealthTrust and are not receiving the HomeTown Health Monthly Update newsletter from Lanie, but would like to, reach out to her. Lanie Hudson | Associate Account Manager, Member Services HealthTrust | e: lanie.hudson@healthtrustpg.com | m: 828.450.4482 The monthly communication series is focused on supporting members, highlighting opportunities to better align with contract portfolio, and uncovering potential savings for your facility; all while keeping you informed with relevant updates and resources. |
Business Partner Insights
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Our Business Partners want to keep you in the know!
Check out recently added posts from our Business Partners over at www.hometownhealthonline.com/blog.
This month: - Quadax: Leveraging RHTP Funding for Rural Hospital Financial Stability. Read Here.
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Sliced Heath: Closing the Gap Between What You're Owed & What You're Paid. Read Here.
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Sellers Dorsey: Turning Data into Actionable Workflows: A Cast Study on Improving Care Gap Closure & Incentive Revenue for a Rural Hospital. Read Here
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| Gold Partner | Approved Service Line: Healthcare IT Consulting & Staffing
HealthNET Systems Consulting provides trusted advisory services and system expertise as an independent and objective healthcare IT consulting firm. With deep experience in all major EHR systems and niche applications, HealthNET experts combine that knowledge with industry best practices to help clients transform healthcare delivery across the continuum of care.
As a collaborative resource, HealthNET provides strategic services (IT strategic planning, system selections, rural health transformation services, etc.), project leadership (system implementations, optimization, workflow redesign, etc.) technology (interfaces, data conversations, analytics, report writing, etc.), and professional resources (interim IT leadership, staff augmentation, legacy support, training, etc.) Contact Stephanie Wallace, VP of Sales and Marketing, 724-757-4707. Visit www.healthnetconsulting.com |
ASA Healthcare has 4 clinic patient beds and X-ray equipment that need a new home. Patient beds ideal for clinic use. X-ray equipment is dated but will work when system component is added. Contact Tracy Edwards tedwards@asahealthcare.org if interested |
Recording Available: Increasing Access to Cancer Screenings & Clinical Trials
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Georgia CORE reduces the burden of cancer in our state through research, education, and advocacy. Listen in to their most recent webinar! Learning Outcomes: -
Identify current evidence-based cancer screening recommendations, including appropriate populations, screening modalities, and testing intervals, as outlined by nationally recognized guideline organizations.
- Integrate cancer screening processes into existing clinical workflows using team-based approaches, pre-visit planning, and available health information technology.
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Recognize common patient-, provider-, and system-level barriers to cancer screening and apply evidence-informed strategies to address these barriers.
- Recall availability of cancer clinical trials in Georgia and how to find open trials for patients.
Intended Audience: Primary care providers including physicians, APPs, nurses, and navigators. Enroll & Watch On Demand Here |
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Questions? Need Assistance? Contact us at hthtech@hometownhealthonline.com Reach us by phone at 470.655.6950 |
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