Womack Hosts CDC Director Cohen in Arkansas’ Third District

Rogers, AR—April 9, 2024…Congressman Steve Womack (AR-3) hosted Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr. Mandy Cohen to Northwest Arkansas on Monday, April 8, to visit various partner organizations in the area, share the importance of strong investments in community health, and see the partnership between the CDC and local health care in action.

Congressman Womack said, “I was honored to welcome Dr. Cohen to Northwest Arkansas to showcase the excellence happening in our corner of the Natural State. As a senior appropriator, I see how federal investments through CDC grants foster economic growth, promote health, and enhance quality of life. I’m grateful Dr. Cohen had the opportunity to witness the incredible work of our local health providers in action.”

Dr. Cohen said, “CDC’s mission is to protect health and improve lives, and that requires a team. My visit to Northwest Arkansas highlighted partnerships across education, health care, local government, and private industry that can help us protect health. We need the resources and authorities to continue to sustain and build our team across the country and abroad, and I thank Representative Womack for his work here in Northwest Arkansas and in Congress to work with us to make that possible.”

Rep. Womack and Dr. Cohen toured the Bentonville Head Start and Early Head Start facility and engaged with UAMS Northwest and NWA Head Start staff involved in the implementation of REACH grant funding, which supported child nutrition initiatives, vaccine clinics, physical activity training, and breastfeeding rooms at Bentonville Head Start.

Rep. Womack and Dr. Cohen were welcomed by Bentonville Schools’ staff and students and toured the Ignite Professional Studies facility. Following the tour, they engaged with 100 junior and senior students participating in the Ignite Professional Studies Program.

At Community Clinic NWA, Rep. Womack and Dr. Cohen led a roundtable discussion on how CDC funding has been utilized in Northwest Arkansas by the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) and partner organizations. Rep. Womack, Dr. Cohen, Community Clinic CEO Judd Semingson, and Division Director of Community Programs (UAMS Northwest) Pearl McElfish, Ph.D., M.B.A. provided opening remarks. Healthcare organizations and members of Our Healthy Alliance also participated in the roundtable discussion.

Rep. Womack and Dr. Cohen also visited members of the Walmart Health team and toured the Walmart Emergency Operations Center and the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

CDC’s funded work in Arkansas’ Third District:

• CDC’s REACH grant program provided funding to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) for the 2023-2028 program cycle to continue implementing evidence-based strategies to improve health, prevent chronic disease, and reduce health disparities among priority populations.

  • Partnerships funded through this program were previously used to reach Marshallese and Hispanic communities with health and vaccination information.

  • This program also supports work in education and early childhood programs to promote healthy environments, healthy eating, physical activity, and health education to prevent obesity and chronic disease.

• Arkansas Maternal and Perinatal Quality Outcomes Quality Review Committee—Perinatal Quality Collaboratives provide the infrastructure that supports quality improvement efforts addressing obstetric and newborn care and outcomes in a state or region. CDC currently funds 36 state PQCs, including Arkansas.

Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and U.S. Rep. Steve Womack, R-Rogers, were in Northwest Arkansas on Monday (April 8) to visit with regional health care officials.

(Talk Business & Politics) CDC director visits Northwest Arkansas, meets with local health leaders

State officials take steps to avoid spread of avian influenza in dairy cattle

by George Jared (gjared@talkbusiness.net)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in dairy herds in Texas, Kansas, Michigan, Idaho, and New Mexico.

Symptoms of the virus in dairy cattle include decreased lactation, low appetite, and thickening of milk.

To date, there have been no reported cases of HPAI in livestock within Arkansas, the state’s Department of Agriculture has reported. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed that a dairy farm worker tested positive for HPAI in Texas on April 1.

State officials take steps to avoid spread of avian influenza in dairy cattle

Cooperative Extension Service receives CDC High Obesity Program funding

By Rebekah Hall
U of A System Division of Agriculture

LITTLE ROCK — In many rural Arkansas counties, access to healthy food, nutrition education and safe places for physical activity are limited, contributing to higher rates of obesity. To help improve these conditions, the Cooperative Extension Service has received a five-year, $4 million grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s High Obesity Program.

PLAY FOR ALL — As part of Cooperative Extension Service efforts to reduce rates of obesity in Arkansas, extension worked with the City of Forrest City and the Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas to renovate Stuart Springs Park with accessible playground equipment, new signage, bike racks and walking tracks. (Division of Agriculture photo.)

The Cooperative Extension Service, the outreach arm of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, is one of 16 land grant universities selected to receive funding to implement the CDC’s High Obesity Program. The program funds universities working with local cooperative extension services in mostly rural counties where 40 percent or more of adults have obesity.

Bryan Mader, extension assistant professor and health specialist for the Division of Agriculture, said this is the first round of funding in a five-year grant cycle. The High Obesity Program will be implemented in Bradley, Crittenden, Desha, Drew, Hempstead, Phillips, Monroe and St. Francis counties.

According to the CDC, obesity in the United States affects more than 100 million adults and 14 million children, accounting for approximately $173 billion in annual healthcare costs. In 2021, the adult obesity rate in Arkansas was 38.7 percent. That same year, 37.1 percent of Arkansas youth aged 10-17 qualified as overweight or obese, according to the CDC.

Mader said this funding will support programming that addresses food security, safe and accessible opportunities for physical activity, family healthy weight programs, breastfeeding and early childhood education. Extension will work closely with the selected communities to implement these important programs, Mader said.

“All of this work will be done in cooperation with community-based organizations as well as community members themselves,” he said. “That’s everyone from local government, healthcare clinics and hospitals — such as UAMS East in Phillips County — to organizations such as food pantries, food banks and early childcare education centers, as well as community members who will be participating in the programs that we put in place.”

Creating sustainable solutions

This is the third High Obesity Program grant to be awarded to the Cooperative Extension Service in Arkansas, the first having been awarded in 2014. Mader said the goal of the program is to not only achieve statistical improvements in health outcomes, but also create sustainable programs that will continue to improve quality of life in the selected counties.

“We’re hoping to create sustainability through collaboration, so that in the end, these communities have built capacity to support health promotion programs and make sure that they’re able to continue improving health outcomes, especially once grant funding ends,” Mader said. “We’re also looking to position extension as being a trusted partner in communities for delivering public health interventions and public health programming.”

During the previous grant cycle, the Cooperative Extension Service has made progress in addressing health disparities related to poor nutrition, physical inactivity and obesity.

“We do a lot of work through food pantries and food banks to increase access to food,” said Jessica Vincent, extension community and public health outreach specialist for the Division of Agriculture. “Part of that work involves expanding food pantries by providing the necessary items they need to bring in and distribute healthier food options, such as proper shelving, refrigeration and freezers.”

Vincent said extension established a mobile food pantry in Phillips County with the help of Phillips County Judge Clark Hall. Hall allows the use of a 30-foot cargo trailer owned by the county, which is otherwise used only during elections.

“We equipped that cargo trailer with shelving, refrigeration and a battery-operated generator,” Vincent said. “That trailer now goes through the very remote areas of Phillips County to serve residents who can’t get into the main Helena-West Helena area to get their food.”

In St. Francis County, extension assisted with the renovation of a local park and is currently renovating a second in partnership with the City of Forrest City and the Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas. This includes installing new, accessible playground equipment, signage, bike racks and walking tracks.

"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's generous award through the High Obesity Program will allow the Cooperative Extension Service to work alongside communities to reduce risk factors for chronic disease and ensure that healthier environments and options are available for all Arkansans,” Mader said.

For more information about extension health programs, visit the Cooperative Extension Service’s Health in Arkansas page.

To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uada.edu. Follow on Twitter at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on Twitter at @AgInArk.

UAMS Awarded $15 Million for Study Comparing Approaches to Postpartum Care

By David Wise

A research team at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) has been approved for a five-year, $15 million funding award by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) to study the best mechanisms for postpartum follow up with new mothers to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity.

Maternal mortality rates in the United States are steadily rising. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1,205 women died of maternal causes in the United States in 2021, compared with 861 in 2020 and 754 in 2019. The United States has a higher maternal mortality ratio than most other high-income nations, with more than half of maternal deaths occurring postpartum after hospital discharge.

The UAMS study will address critical gaps in knowledge about how best to deliver comprehensive postpartum care that ensures timely identification and treatment of complications and meets the needs and preferences of diverse patients including disproportionately impacted racial groups and rural residents.

https://news.uams.edu/2023/04/19/uams-awarded-15-million-for-study-comparing-approaches-to-postpartum-care/

CDC study reveals mental health crisis among high school students; tips for parents

By Rebekah Hall
U of A System Division of Agriculture

LITTLE ROCK — Many of today’s teenagers are facing a mental health crisis. A new study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that in 2021, 42 percent of high school students experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, including 57 percent of teenage girls.

TEENS IN TROUBLE — According to a new study released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 42% of high school students experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness in 2021, including 57 percent of teenage girls. Brittney Schrick, extension family life specialist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, said it's important for parents to pay attention to changes in teens' moods, monitor their phone and social media use, and engage with their day-to-day lives. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention photo.)

Brittney Schrick, extension assistant professor and family life specialist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, said the COVID-19 pandemic is a major contributing factor to mental health issues among teens.

“I think the elephant in the room is COVID,” Schrick said. “It is a collective trauma, a collective stressor, and it was such a prolonged stressor that continues today. People lost family members, and they were away from support networks for extended periods of time. For any student who had or has an unstable or stressful home life, or experienced food insecurity, that would add an extra layer of stress.”

Though these teens — many of whom were in middle school when the pandemic began — were able to adapt and get through the experience, relying solely on resilience is harmful, Schrick said. 

“Resilience is a really important concept, but I think that to a large extent, we have over-emphasized how resilient kids are,” Schrick said. “Because ultimately, they shouldn’t have to continue being resilient about everything.”

According to the CDC study, female high school students and LGBTQ+ students were “more likely than their peers to experience poor mental health and suicidal thoughts and behaviors.” In 2021, nearly 70 percent of LGBTQ+ students experienced feelings of sadness or hopelessness. Schrick said some of this can be attributed to current cultural conversations concerning these groups.

“The high rates of suicide attempts, self-harm and mental health concerns among LGBTQ young people and among adolescent girls is a reflection of the turmoil in the culture surrounding those groups,” Schrick said. “Having consistent discussions surrounding legal rights and future prospects for both of those groups is going to contribute to mental health concerns for these youth.”

“They need support and grace”

Schrick said it’s important for adults to realize that the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the emotional maturity of today’s teenagers.

“I’m around a lot of youth, and they are not as mature as they would be if COVID had never happened,” she said. “If we compare these kids to the kids pre-COVID, they are not the same. Socially, a 16-year-old right now is closer to a 14-year-old.”

Schrick said giving teenagers specific action steps, then letting them know what they need to do next, will be helpful, as “one of the things this group has suffered cognitively is planning, because they’ve never been able to.”

“When they planned, all the plans changed, so they have not gotten to stretch that planning muscle and learn how to do it,” she said. “Everything feels like it’s temporary.”

For adults who are working with today’s teens or will once they enter college or the workforce, Schrick said it’s critical to understand that “it’s not a character flaw, it’s a collective trauma.”

“These kids have been through the wringer,” she said. “It’s really hard to be a teenager right now. I think all we can do as future employers, as parents, as aunts and uncles and mentors, is keep in mind that they’re going to need some help, and it doesn’t make them weak, bad or lazy. They need support and grace.”

Learning to help

The Cooperative Extension Service offers QPR — Question, Persuade, Refer — Suicide Prevention training geared toward all audiences, as well as Mental Health First Aid training. More information about both programs is available on the extension Personal and Family Well-Being website. Contact your county Family and Consumer Sciences agent for more information.

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline also provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress. Call 988 or visit the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline website for support and prevention and crisis resources.

To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uada.edu. Follow on Twitter at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on Twitter at @AgInArk.

Research about Mask Mandates in Arkansas Schools Published in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report

By UAMS News Staff

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) contains research on mask mandates in Arkansas school districts and how the mandates helped to limit COVID-19 at the schools.

Researchers from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences’ (UAMS) Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health and College of Medicine teamed up with the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH), Arkansas Center for Health Improvement (ACHI) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the project.

“This important and well-conducted study involving Arkansas schools amply demonstrates the efficacy of facemasks during viral surges,” said Mark Williams, Ph.D., dean of the UAMS College of Public Health.

https://news.uams.edu/2022/03/09/research-about-mask-mandates-in-arkansas-schools-published-in-cdcs-morbidity-and-mortality-weekly-report/

Research published in this week's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report finds that face masks were effective in preventing the spread of COVID-19 in Arkansas K-12 schools.

Governor Hutchinson Talks Increasing Cases, Demand for At-Home Tests, and New CDC Guidelines

LITTLE ROCK – At his weekly news briefing today, Governor Asa Hutchinson discussed the current demand for at-home COVID tests, new COVID guidelines from the CDC, and increasing case numbers. 

COVID-19

Governor Hutchinson announced today with the addition of 4,978 new cases that Arkansas had the largest single-day increase in cases since the pandemic began. 

He noted that the positivity rate was at 19.7 percent which is also the highest number reported since the beginning of the pandemic.

To proactively address testing needs Governor Hutchinson has directed the Department of Health to acquire 1.5 million rapid at-home tests to be available for free to Arkansans. The test will be available at public local libraries, public health units, and other locations. The National Guard will be helping in the delivery of these at-home tests. 

Governor Hutchinson said that the cost of these tests will be around $10 million and will be covered by existing funds available in the COVID response budget.

"If we can utilize our rapid tests in a more efficient manner across the state that will be a benefit in early detection, early action, and also relieving some of the burdens on our health care workers," Governor Hutchinson said.

Governor Hutchinson addressed the upcoming New Year's Eve holiday and noted that he will be celebrating with friends who are vaccinated and recommends that others celebrating should do the same.

"I'm not canceling everything in life, but I'm also mindful of omicron," Governor Hutchinson said. "I encourage everyone to be around vaccinated people, if they aren't vaccinated everyone should wear a mask and they should socially distance."

Schools

Governor Hutchinson said that Arkansas is committed to in-class instruction. He noted that it is important for students to pursue education for their future and their mental health. 

He said that schools should do what each district thinks is important for the safety of the school environment. He said masks are an option depending on what the district decides.

CDC Guidelines

Governor Hutchinson noted that Arkansas has adopted the new CDC guidelines that determine the best course of action for those with COVID or exposed to COVID.

Regardless of vaccination status, if you test positive for COVID:

- Stay at home for 5 days.

- If you have no symptoms, or your symptoms are resolving after 5 days you can leave your house.

- Continue to wear a mask around others for 5 additional days.

If you were exposed to someone with COVID and you have completed the primary series of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine over 6 months ago and are not boosted OR completed the primary series of J&J over 2 months ago and are not boosted OR are unvaccinated:

- Stay home for 5 days. After that continue to wear a mask around others for 5 additional days.

- If you can’t quarantine you must wear a mask for 10 days.

- Test on day 5 if possible.

- If you develop symptoms get a test and stay home.

If you were exposed to someone with COVID and you have been boosted OR completed the primary series of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine within the last 6 months OR completed the primary series of J&J vaccine within the last 2 months:

- Wear a mask around others for 10 days.

- Test on day 5, if possible.

- If you develop symptoms get a test and stay home

"This is a significant change that will allow our workers to get back to work quicker, with the right precautions, and allow us to do what is necessary in society," Governor Hutchinson said.

UAMS Project Part of National Effort to Reduce COVID-19 in Hardest Hit Populations

By David Robinson

June 14, 2021 | LITTLE ROCK — UAMS researchers and their community partners across Arkansas are studying the causes behind COVID-19’s devastating impact on minorities and developing plans to help increase vaccination rates.

Supporting the one-year project is a $1.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Community Engagement Alliance (CEAL) Against COVID-19 Disparities. UAMS was one of 11 teams selected as part of the national alliance.

Last year, Arkansas was identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as a national hot spot for COVID-19 disparities among Marshallese and Hispanic populations. The disparities in percentage of cases, hospitalizations and deaths among these populations were so severe that CDC and NIH officials visited Northwest Arkansas to investigate.

Black/African American and rural communities across the state have been struck hard, too, said Pebbles Fagan, Ph.D., MPH, one of three principal investigators on the study.

https://news.uams.edu/2021/06/14/uams-project-part-of-national-effort-to-reduce-covid-19-in-hardest-hit-populations/

UAMS Principal Investigators Pearl McElfish, Ph.D., MBA, Pebbles Fagan, Ph.D., MPH, and Laura James, M.D.

Fresh Start Program Continuing Through CDC

Renters, Advocates Demand Action From Governor As Congress Hashes Out New Aid Package

By ZUZANNA SITEK

With the CDC moratorium on eviction set to expire Dec. 31, activists gathered at the governor's mansion in Little Rock and the governor's home in Rogers this week to demand action from the state in the form a state moratorium and financial assistance to renters. At the same time, renters, landlords and advocates wait anxiously for the U.S. Congress to pass another stimulus package that includes rental and utility assistance and a moratorium extension, as well as direct payments to taxpayers.

https://www.kuaf.com/post/renters-advocates-demand-action-governor-congress-hashes-out-new-aid-package

A small group of protesters gathered outside Governor Asa Hutchinson's home in Rogers on Wednesday evening.

COURTESY / CLINT SCHNEKLOTH