CHC Terms & Acronyms
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| 329/330/340 Projects | Clinics funded under Sections 329 (Migrant Health Centers), 330 (Community Health Centers) and 340 (Homeless Health Centers) of the U.S. Public Health Service Act. |
| AACN | American Association of Critical Care Nurses or American Association of Colleges of Nursing |
| AACOM | Association of American Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine |
| AAEP | American Academy of Emergency Psychiatry |
| AAFP | American Academy of Family Physicians |
| AAMC | Association of American Medical Colleges |
| AANP | American Academy of Nurse Practitioners |
| AAP | American Academy of Pediatrics |
| AAPA | American Academy of Physician Assistants |
| AAPD | American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry |
| ACA | Affordable Care Act |
| ACEP | American College of Emergency Physicians |
| ACF | Administration for Children and Families - One of the operating divisions of DHHS. |
| ACHI | Association for Community Health Improvement |
| ACO | Accountable Care Organization - An umbrella organization that combines primary care physicians, specialists, and hospitals in an attempt to coordinate care and reduce unnecessary costs. |
| ACOG | American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists |
| Actual Charge | The amount a physician or other practitioner actually bills a patient for a particular medical service or procedure. This may differ from the customary, prevailing and/or reasonable charge as recognized by Medicare and other insurance programs. |
| ACU | Association of Clinicians for the Underserved |
| ADA | American Dental Association, American Diabetes Association, American Dietetic Association, or Americans with Disabilities Act |
| AHEC | Area Health Education Center |
| AHNA | American Holistic Nurses Association |
| AHQR | Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research – One of the eight operating divisions of the Department of Health and Human Services. It conducts and supports research, demonstration projects, evaluations, training, guideline development, and the dissemination of information on health care services and on systems for the delivery of such services. |
| AMA | American Medical Association |
| AMCHP | Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs |
| AMSA | American Medical Student Association |
| ANA | American Nurses Association |
| ANSI | American National Standards Institute |
| AoA | Administration on Aging - One of the operating divisions of DHHS. |
| AOA | American Osteopathic Association |
| APhA | American Pharmacists Association |
| APHA | American Public Health Association |
| ARRA | American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 |
| ASG | Assistant Surgeon General |
| ASHP | American Society of Health-System Pharmacists |
| Assignment of Benefits | An agreement in which a patient assigns to another party, usually the provider of the service, the right to receive payment from a third party for the service the patient has received. In Medicare, if a physician agrees to accept assignment, s/he must agree to accept the program payment as payment in full (except for coinsurance, co-payment and deductible amount required of the patient). |
| ASTHO | Association of State and Territorial Health Officials |
| ATSDR | Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry - One of the operating divisions of DHHS. |
| AUCH | Association of Utah Community Health – The primary care association representing health care centers in the state of Utah. |
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| BBA | Balanced Budget Act |
| BCRR | Bureau of Health Care Delivery and Assistance Common Reporting Requirements – A uniform set of tables, data elements and definitions pertaining to the operational, financial and administrative management of the program, which programs were required to complete annually prior to 1996. |
| BCRS | Bureau of Clinician Recruitment & Service – One of the bureaus of HRSA. Its focus is to coordinate the recruitment and retention of caring health professionals in the healthcare system and to support communities' efforts to build more integrated and sustainable systems of care. |
| BHPr | Bureau of Health Professions – One of the bureaus of HRSA. It provides national leadership in coordinating, evaluating, and supporting the development and utilization of the Nation's health personnel. |
| BPHC | Bureau of Primary Health Care - One of the bureaus of HRSA. It provides national leadership in assessing the Nation's health care needs of underserved populations and in assisting communities to provide primary health care services to the underserved in moving toward eliminating health disparities. A major program component is the Consolidated Health Center Program. |
| BPI | Business Process Improvement |
| CA | Cooperative Agreement |
| CACHIE | Colorado Associated Community Health Information Exchange |
| CC | Commissioned Corps – The PHS Commissioned Corps is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. |
| CCAN | Colorado Clinical Advisory Network – CCHN's clinical network, which serves as a section of the Board of Directors. Consists of Medical/Clinical Directors from the 329, 330, and 340 programs in Colorado. |
| CCHN | Colorado Community Health Network – The primary care association representing health care centers in the state of Colorado. |
| CCMCN | Colorado Community Managed Care Network – The organization consisting of and representing the C/MHC partners in the Medicaid HMO called Colorado Access. |
| CDC | Centers of Disease Control and Prevention – It’s responsible for disease prevention and control, environmental health, health education, and many other activities. |
| CDHN | Colorado Dental Health Network – CCHN's dental network, which serves as a section of the Board of Directors. Consists of Dental Directors, and other dental staff, from Colorado's 329, 330, or 340 projects, and other organizations that provide dental services to the underserved population. |
| CEHRT | Certified Electronic Health Record Technology – As certified by the ONC. |
| CHAD | Community HealthCare Association of the Dakotas – The primary care association representing health care centers in the states of North Dakota and South Dakota. |
| CHIP | Child Health Insurance Program |
| CHAMPS | Community Health Association of Mountain/Plains States - The Region VIII Primary Care Association representing health care centers in the states of Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming. |
| CHAMPS | Community Health Center and Academic Medical Partnerships |
| CHC | Community Health Center – A community-based health care facility that provides prevention-oriented primary care services in medically underserved areas. Grant support is received from the federal government under Section 330 of the U.S. Public Health Service Act (sometimes these centers are referred to as "330s"). |
| CIP | Capital Improvement Project |
| CIP | Capital Improvement Program – A category of HRSA ARRA grants which may be awarded through the Consolidated Health Center Program |
| CLIA | Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment |
| Clinical Measures Workbook | A federally-developed document delineating mandated (primarily health promotion and disease prevention) services to be delivered to groups of individuals, as defined by Lifecycles. CHAMPS has a copy available in its Resource Library for members to borrow. |
| Clinical Network | Network of clinicians working in community, homeless and migrant health centers, often affiliated with a state, regional and/or national association. |
| CME | Continuing Medical Education |
| C/MHCs | Community and Migrant Health Centers |
| CMHC | Community Mental Health Center |
| CMS | Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, previously called Health Care Financing Administration - One of the operating divisions of DHHS. |
| CNM | Certified Nurse-Midwife |
| COB | Close of Business |
| Co-insurance | Under a health insurance policy, a cost-sharing requirement which provides that the insured will assume a portion or percentage of the costs of covered services. The health insurance policy provides that the insurer will reimburse a specified percentage (usually 80%) of all, or certain specified covered medical expenses in excess of any deductible amounts payable by the insured. The insured is then liable for the remaining percentage of the costs, until the maximum amount payable under the insurance policy, if any, is reached. |
| Colorado Access | The Colorado HMO consisting of several C/MHCs (represented by CCMCN), Denver Health and Hospitals, University Hospital, and The Childrens' Hospital, as well as many local hospitals and specialty providers in Colorado. |
| Co-payment | A term describing patient financial responsibility under a plan wherein the insured pays a specified flat amount per unit of service, e.g., $2/visit, with the insurer paying the balance of the approved cost. The co-payment is incurred at the time the service is rendered. The amount paid does not vary with the cost of the service (usually does vary with the type of service), unlike coinsurance which is based upon a percentage of the cost. |
| COPC | Community Oriented Primary Care – A combined primary care and public health approach to identifying and meeting the health needs of a community. |
| Cost Based Reimbursement |
A method of payment, different from fee-for-service, delivered to patients. In cost-related reimbursement systems, the amount of the payment is based on the cost to the provider of delivering the service. The actual payment may be based on any of several different formulae, such as full cost, full cost plus an additional percentage, allowable costs, or a fraction of costs. Examples of cost-based reimbursement systems include the Rural Health Clinics Act (RHCA), the Federally Funded Health Center Act (FFHC), and the Federally Qualified Health Center Act (FQHC). |
| CPAB | Clinical and Professional Activities Branch |
| CPE/CEU | Continuing Professional Education/Continuing Education Units |
| CQI | Continuous Quality Improvement – A methodology, which, when properly implemented, insures a constant elevation in the level of services being provided. |
| CQM | Clinical Quality Measures – A component of the CMS EHR Incentive Program (Meaningful Use), includes tools to measure or quantify healthcare processes, outcomes, patient perceptions, and organizational structure and/or systems associated with providing high-quality health care and/or related to one or more quality goals for health care. |
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| Deductible | The expense that an insured must incur before an insurer will assume any liability for all or part of the remaining cost of covered services. |
| DDS | Doctor of Dental Surgery |
| DHHS | Department of Health and Human Services – DHHS is a cabinet level department, responsible for ACF, AHQR, AoA, ASTDR, CDC, CMS, FDA, HRSA, IHS, NIH, PSC, and SAMHSA. |
| DMD | Doctor of Dental Medicine (Dentariae Medicinae Doctor) |
| DO | Doctor of Osteopathy |
| DrPH | Doctor of Public Health |
| DSLR | Division of Scholarships and Loan Repayment – DSLR is responsible for the administrative aspects of the NHSC Scholarship Program and Loan Repayment Program. |
| EDA | Early Decision Alternative – A scholarship obligor matching before the EDA deadline has the freedom to choose from any available HPOL site. |
| EEO | Equal Employment Opportunity |
| EHB | Electronic Handbook – HRSA's web portal for submitting grant-related information and reports. |
| EHR | Electronic Health Records |
| EMC | Expanded Medical Capacity – A category of HRSA grants which may be awarded through the Consolidated Health Center Program. |
| EMR | Electronic Medical Records (System) |
| Encounter | A contact between a patient and a health care provider (face-to-face). |
| EPSDT | Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment |
| FDA | Food and Drug Administration – It oversees the safety and inspection of foods, drugs, medical devices and cosmetics. |
| Field Office | The federal office, located in one of ten regions in the country, having primary responsibility for National Health Service Corps assignees, community health centers, migrant health centers, homeless health centers, clinical networks, state primary care associations, regional primary care associations and other grant-funded activities. |
| FNP | Family Nurse Practitioner |
| FO | Field Office |
| FP | Family Planning or Family Physician |
| FQHC | Federally-Qualified Health Centers – Those centers that receive cost-based reimbursement for services delivered to patients who qualify for Medicaid or for Medicare. In order to qualify, a clinic must receive federal funds or meet other criteria. |
| FTCA | Federal Tort Claims Act – The provision in law under which federal employees (or other named parties) receive their professional liability coverage from the US government; available to NHSC providers, and providers who work in 329, 330, and 340 programs. |
| FTE | Full-Time Equivalent |
| GME | Graduate Medical Education |
| GSA | General Services Administration – This is essentially the procurement agency for the government. Anything you want purchased must be approved by this agency first. |
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| HAB | HIV/AIDS Bureau – One of the bureaus of HRSA. It provides leadership in the delivery of high quality clinical care and supporting services for uninsured and underinsured individuals living with and families affected by HIV/AIDS. The Bureau includes the Office for Advancement of Telehealth and HRSA's Center for Quality. |
| HCCN | Health Center Controlled Networks - HCCNs improve operational effectiveness and clinical quality in health centers by providing management, financial, technology and clinical support services. The networks are controlled by and operate on behalf of HRSA-supported health centers. Each network comprises at least three collaborating organizations. |
| HCH | Healthcare for the Homeless/Homeless Health Center – A health care entity that provides care to the homeless, funded under Section 340 of the US Public Health Service Act. (Sometimes referred to as "340s".) |
| HDC | Health Disparities Collaboratives |
| Health Care Plans | Written plans, developed by clinicians, which respond to the health promotion/disease prevention needs (Clinical Outcome Measures) of the Lifecycles. |
| HIE | Health Information Exchange - HIE is defined as the mobilization of healthcare information electronically across organizations within a region, community or healthcare system. HIE provides the capability to electronically move clinical information among disparate health care information systems while maintaining the meaning of the information being exchanged. The goal of HIE is to facilitate access to and retrieval of clinical data to provide safer, more timely, efficient, effective, equitable, patient-centered care. |
| HIPAA | Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act |
| HMO | Health Maintenance Organization |
| HP/DP | Health promotion/disease prevention (referred to as "hip-dip"). |
| HPOL | HPSA Placement Opportunity List – A prioritized list of Health Professional Shortage Area sites eligible for NHSC assistance to insure the equitable distribution of NHSC providers to needy areas. |
| HPSA | Health Professional Shortage Area – A region of the country, or a defined population group; where, through the utilization of specific criteria, a deficiency of medical, dental, and/or mental health services has been identified; graded on four levels: I, II, III, and IV. |
| HRSA | Health Resources and Services Administration – One of the operating divisions of DHHS. |
| HSB | Healthcare Systems Bureau – One of the bureaus of HRSA. It provides national leadership in transplantation issues, emergency preparedness, vaccines, etc. |
| HVA | Hazard Vulnerability Assessment (Tool) |
| IDS | Integrated Delivery Systems |
| IDS | Increased Demand for Services – A category of HRSA ARRA grants which may be awarded through the Consolidated Health Center Program |
| IHI | Institute for Healthcare Improvement |
| IHS | Indian Health Service – Responsible for the health care needs of Native Americans and Alaska Natives, which includes maintaining clinics and hospitals, improving sanitation and water supply systems, sponsoring disease prevention programs, and performing clinical research. |
| ISDI | Integrated Service Delivery Initiative |
| JCAHO | Joint Commission for Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Hospitals and healthcare facilities must be accredited by this organization every two years in order to be eligible for federal funding programs such as Medicare and Medicaid and other insurance programs. |
| LEP | Limited English Proficiency |
| Lifecycles | A concept dividing the population into the following groups: perinatal, pediatric, adolescent, adult, geriatric and special populations (e.g., HIV+, Native Americans, Homeless). Health Care Plans are developed in response to the needs of these groups. |
| LRPB | Loan Repayment Programs Branch – One of three branches of the Division of Scholarships and Loan Repayments. |
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| MAI | Management Assessment Item |
| MAPPS | Media, Access, Point of Purchase/Promotion, Pricing, and Social Support and Services |
| MCHB | Maternal and Child Health Bureau – One of the bureaus of HRSA. It provides national leadership, in partnership with key stakeholders, to improve the physical and mental health, safety and well-being of the maternal and child health (MCH) population. |
| M/CHCs | Migrant and Community Health Centers |
| MCN | Migrant Clinicians Network |
| MCO | Managed Care Organization |
| MD | Doctor of Medicine (allopathic) |
| Medicaid | A federal/state funded program (also known as medical assistance), operated by the state, which provides medical benefits for certain low income persons. |
| Medicare | A nationwide health insurance program for people over 65, and for persons eligible for social security disability payments. |
| MGMA | Medical Group Management Association |
| MHA | Master of Health Administration |
| MHC | Migrant Health Center – A health-care facility that provides prevention-oriented primary care services to migrant and seasonal farm workers and their families; funded under Section 329 of the US Public Health Service Act (sometimes referred to as "329s"). |
| MLP | Mid Level Practitioner – A Physician Assistant, Nurse Practitioner or Nurse Midwife (no longer a "politically" correct term). |
| MOA | Memorandum of Agreement – An agreement between two or more parties (ex: an agreement signed by a community, the NHSC, and a health professional which allows him/her to be assigned to a practice site). |
| MPCA | Montana Primary Care Association – The primary care association representing health care centers in the state of Montana. |
| MPCN | Mountain/Plains Clinical Network – The association of Region VIII clinicians working in C/MHCs in Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming. MPCN is a program of the regional primary care association, CHAMPS. |
| MSFW | Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker |
| MSO | Management Services Organization |
| MUA | Medically Underserved Area – A geographic location that has insufficient health care resources to meet the needs of the population. |
| MU | Meaningful Use – Refers to Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Programs, administered by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), in which eligible health care providers and hospitals have the opportunity to receive significant incentive payments for adoption and meaningful use of certified EHRs. |
| MUP | Medically Underserved Population – A group of individuals having insufficient health resources available to them to meet their needs (the population may or may not be located within an MUA). |
| MYA | Mid-Year Assessment |
| NACHC | National Association of Community Health Centers – The national association that represents community, migrant and homeless health centers. |
| NACCHO | National Association of City and County Health Officers |
| NAP | New Access Point – A category of HRSA grants which may be awarded through the Consolidated Health Center Program. |
| NASW | National Association of Social Work |
| NCFH | National Center for Farmworker Health |
| NCH | National Coalition for the Homeless |
| NCHS | National Center for Health Statistics |
| NCI | National Cancer Institute |
| NGA | Notice of Grant Award or National Governors’ Association |
| NHSC | National Health Service Corps – A federal program offering scholarships and loan repayment to clinical providers, and technical assistance to communities; their mission is to assist in the development, recruitment and retention of community-responsive, culturally competent primary care providers in order to serve people in health professional shortage areas (HPSAs). |
| NIA | National Institute on Aging |
| NIH | National Institutes of Health – Mission is to conduct health-related research both directly and through the provision of grants to other organizations. |
| NIOSH | National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health |
| NLM | National Library of Medicine |
| NMWC | National Migrant Workers Council |
| NP | Nurse Practitioner |
| NPDB | National Practitioner Data Bank |
| NRHA | National Rural Health Association |
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| OAFM | Office of Administration and Financial Management |
| OC | Office of Communications |
| OEOCR | Office of Equal Opportunity and Civil Rights |
| OFAM | Office of Federal Assistance Management |
| OGM | Office of Grants Management |
| OIHA | Office of International Health Affairs |
| OIT | Office of Information Technology |
| OL | Office of Legislation |
| OMB | Office of Management and Budget |
| OMH | Office of Minority Health |
| ONC | Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology |
| OPDIV | Operating Division |
| OPE | Office of Planning and Evaluation |
| OPR | Office of Performance Review |
| ORHP | Office of Rural Health Policy |
| ORO | Office of Regional Operations |
| OSHA | Occupational Safety and Health Administration |
| PA | Physician Assistant |
| PACE | Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly |
| PCA | Primary Care Association – A state (SPCA) or regional (RPCA) nonprofit organization, federally-funded, representing the interests of its members (primarily community and migrant health centers) and the patients served by its members. |
| PCER | Primary Care Effectiveness Review |
| PCMH | Patient-Centered Medical Home – In the medical home model, a patient's primary care office coordinates and tracks the care being provided by specialists and hospitals, and also makes sure that patients follow through on care regimens and follow-up care. |
| PCO | Primary Care Office |
| PEERS | Patient Experience Evaluation Report System |
| PHS | (United States) Public Health Service |
| POP | Principles of Practice – A document completed annually by all federal NHSC assignees, which describes the scope and location of their practices. The POP is negotiated between the assignee and his/her project and provides the basis for the assignee’s federal malpractice (tort) coverage. |
| PPA | Private Practice Assignment – A type of NHSC assignment. The PPA professional is employed by, and subject to the personnel system of, the nonprofit private or public entity (the Entity) to which they are assigned. The salary and benefits are paid by the Entity. |
| PPACA | Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act |
| PPO | Private Practice Option – A type of NHSC assignment. The PPO professional conducts full-time private practice in an approved HPSA or Preferred Provider Organization. |
| Project Officer | The federal employee, within the HRSA Field Office, having primary responsibility for a project or group of projects (referred to in some regions as Project Management Consultant). |
| PSC | Program Support Center - One of the operating divisions of DHHS. |
| PSO | Provider Sponsored Organization |
| QA | Quality Assurance – A process used to assure that care being rendered meets individual clinic goals, as well as meeting community standards. |
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| Regional Clinical Consultant | The clinician, within the HRSA Field Office, having primary responsibility for clinical affairs within the Region. |
| RHA | Regional Health Administrator – Oversees DHHS activities within his/her region. The United States is divided into 10 regions for the administration of DHHS programs. |
| RHC | Rural Health Clinic/Center – A clinic located in a rural area that receives cost-based reimbursement, under Medicaid and Medicare, due to it’s qualifying under the Rural Health Clinic Act (RHCA). |
| RHIO | Regional Health Information Organizations – Organized cross-jurisdictional healthcare data-sharing organizations. |
| RN | Registered Nurse |
| RPC | Regional Program Consultant – A regional/field office employee responsible for a specific program. |
| RPCA | Regional Primary Care Association |
| SAMHSA | Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration – One of the operating divisions of DHHS. It has both service and educational components dealing with substance abuse and mental health. |
| SBIRT | Screening, Brief Intervention, Referral to Treatment |
| Scholar | A person receiving education grants from NHSC in return for a required period of service in a high-scoring HPSA. |
| SOP | Standard Operating Procedure |
| SPCA | State Primary Care Association |
| UCR | Usual and Customary Rates – Those rates normally charged by health care providers for a service in a given geographical area. |
| UDS | Uniform Data System – A uniform set of tables, data elements and definitions pertaining to the operational, financial and administrative management of the program, which programs are required to complete annually. The UDS replaced the BCRR in 1996. |
| WIC | Women, Infants, and Children Program |
| WPCA | Wyoming Primary Care Association – The primary care association representing health care centers in the state of Wyoming. |
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