Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) COVID-19 Resources
FQHCs are essential partners in our City’s public health infrastructure. CDPH recognizes the crucial role FQHCs play in serving our Chicago communities through this pandemic and is sharing the following resources to support this work. Contact the CDPH FQHC liaison, Ayla Karamustafa, with questions at (ayla.karamustafa@cityofchicago.org).
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) & Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) Requests
- To make PPE requests of CDPH: please complete the RR213 form, email it to CDPHPHEOC@cityofchicago.org, and copy Ayla Karamustafa. Follow-up questions may also be directed to Ayla Karamustafa.
- To make an MRC volunteer staff request, please follow instructions on this form. If you have questions about the process, please contact Jannita Caine at Jannita.Caine@cityofchicago.org.
COVID-19 Testing & Reporting Resources
- For FQHCs that are testing, please review and comply with the Commissioner of Health of the City of Chicago’s Public Health Order 2020-6.
- Review the CDPH map of current FQHC testing locations in the City of Chicago.
- Review the IDPH interactive map for current testing locations in Chicago and Illinois.
- All COVID-positive cases identified in Chicago must be reported to CDPH. Please visit the Chicago Health Alert Network (HAN) website for detailed information on reporting.
- The University of Chicago Medicine released a COVID Clinic Guide based on their partnership with FQHCs on the South side of the City, available for review here.
- Review the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s updated testing guidelines for regular updates.
- Review IDPH interim testing guidelines for FQHCs for current testing guidelines.
Racial Equity Rapid Response (RERR) Team:
To help save the lives of those most vulnerable and to mitigate effects from the crisis caused by racial disparities, the City mounted the Racial Equity Rapid Response — a data-driven, community-based and community-driven mitigation of CoVID-19 illness and death in Black and Brown Chicago communities. Current RERR priorities for FQHCs include:
- Stay aware of high priority zip codes and community areas experiencing disproportionate morbidity and mortality. Updated data can be found on the City’s COVID-19 website (https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/covid-19/home/latest-data.html).
- Where possible, scale up services in high priority zip codes and community areas where COVID diagnoses and deaths are highest, per CDPH data (https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/covid-19/home/latest-data.html)
- Provide targeted wellness checks for patients in high priority zip codes or community areas who are considered high risk, as outlined by the RERR Provider Workgroup in the this cover letter and additional guidance document.
Resources for Healthcare Workers
Resources for Healthcare Workers- For healthcare workers at your agency that are in need of safe housing, please review the following documents and follow the process outlined by the Mayor’s Office:
- NAMI Chicago offers weekly support groups for healthcare workers. Please share widely with relevant members of your team.
