Monthly News & Updates | December 2025

View as Webpage

CTC-RI’s Annual Conference, held on November 19, brought together more than 350 attendees for a full day of learning, collaboration, and innovation in primary care.

Highlights included keynotes on fostering medical trust and reclaiming joy in medicine, along with 14 sessions covering topics from size-inclusive care to workflow optimization and workforce solutions.

This year’s conference showcased the innovation, adaptability, and shared purpose driving primary care forward. 

Read the full article.

Stay informed on key learnings, collaborative meetings, and peer exchanges!

Explore our upcoming meetings and opportunities calendar.

Best Practices in Team-Based Care: Improving STI Screening in Primary Care | Virtual Session

🗓️ Tuesday, December 16 (8:00-9:00 AM)

Join CTC-RI for a Best Practices in Team-Based Care session featuring innovative primary care teams improving STI screening and follow-up workflows.

Learn how Rhode Island practices are using team-based approaches to increase screening rates, enhance patient communication, and build sustainable systems of care. 

Clinical Strategy Committee Meeting: CSC 2025 Lookback & 2026 Roadmap

🗓️ Friday, December 19 (7:30-9:00 AM)

This session will build on previous discussions to develop a shared understanding of what access means for patients, practices, and systems. Together, we’ll explore how CSC can strengthen its role as a statewide convener and drive meaningful progress on access, sustainability, and workforce within primary care.


✅ If you are not currently on the CSC meeting invite series and would like to attend, please contact Mitch Irving at mirving@ctc-ri.org.

Help Us Strengthen Tobacco Cessation Support for Families

CTC-RI and the Rhode Island Department of Health are hosting virtual listening sessions with parents and caregivers who use tobacco or have experienced secondhand smoke exposure. Feedback will help inform new training for healthcare providers and community health workers.

Sessions are offered in English and Spanish, will last 90 minutes, and are scheduled based on participant availability. Participants receive a $50 gift card.

We are seeking pregnant or postpartum individuals with a baby under one year old who currently use or previously used tobacco/nicotine, or who have been exposed to tobacco or secondhand smoke during or after pregnancy.

Please consider sharing the materials below with families who may be interested in participating.

• Listening Session Interest Form
• Recruitment Flyer

CTC-RI Welcomes Esteemed Physician Leader Dr. Margaret Miller as Provider Consultant

Dr. Margaret Miller is a physician leader dedicated to advancing primary care and women’s health. She completed her MD at Emory University and her internal medicine residency at Brown University’s primary care track before specializing in obstetric medicine at Women & Infants Hospital. She later founded and directed the Women’s Medicine Collaborative and served as Chief of Women’s Services for Lifespan. Now Medical Director of Primary Care at Providence Community Health Centers, she is an active community partner and nationally recognized educator and speaker.

An Evening of Insight and Collaboration with Chris Koller, President, Milbank Memorial Fund

The CTC-RI Board of Directors enjoyed a special networking and dinner meeting in October with special guest Chris Koller, MA, President, Milbank Memorial Fund.

Koller addressed the Board members with remarks on the state of primary care in Rhode Island while speaking to his September 2, 2025, Issue Brief, “Implementing High-Quality Primary Care: A Policy Menu for States."

"My work around the country has underscored the importance of public policy to strengthen primary care and the important role of private sector partners to hold the public sector accountable for this work.

RI has a strong tradition of health policy innovation, and CTC-RI is very well positioned to take the lead in this work." – Chris Koller, MA, President, Milbank Memorial Fund.

2024-25 Annual Report: Charting a Path for Primary Care

We’re excited to announce the release of the CTC-RI 2024-25 Annual Report, charting a year of collaboration, innovation, and system-wide progress in Rhode Island’s primary care scene. Read the full story of how we’ve strengthened care teams, supported over 800 providers, and are driving toward an equitable health system for all Rhode Islanders.

Read our 2024 Annual Report.

CTC-RI Has a New Home!

We’re excited to share that CTC-RI has officially moved into a new space designed to better support our growing work and partnerships.

Our new home at 2374 Post Road in Warwick will allow us to collaborate more effectively, host more convenings, and continue driving innovation in Rhode Island’s primary care system.

Please update your records with our new address, and stay tuned—we look forward to welcoming you soon!

Your hub for recent CTC-RI programs, learning sessions, and highlights!

Find recaps and links to presentations, resources, and recordings from our most recent work.

Click here to catch up on missed content or revisit a session.

Help Shape Rhode Island’s Oral Health Priorities

Primary care teams play a key role in supporting whole-person health, including oral health. 

The Rhode Island Oral Health Coalition (RIOHC) is gathering input to understand the current oral health landscape in Rhode Island and to identify where support, resources, and advocacy are most needed. The survey is brief, confidential, and open to anyone working in private practice, community, hospital, or public health settings. Your insights will help shape RIOHC’s priorities and guide future efforts to improve oral health access, education, and equity across the state.

Take the survey.

Free Behavioral Health Screening and Prevention Webinar from UMASS Chan Medical School

Join presenters Jenna Mullarkey, Psy.D., and Brian Stran, PhD., on January 7 for From Screening to Prevention, a practical webinar on bringing Annual Behavioral Health Wellness Exams into primary care workflows.

Participants will receive actionable strategies for team roles, scheduling, documentation, and patient engagement to support early identification, prevention, and seamless integrated care.

Final 2026 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule and CCHP Analysis of Telehealth Policies

On October 31st, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the finalized 2026 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS). As in previous years, the Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP) has reviewed the rule, identified the telehealth-related provisions, and prepared a detailed factsheet summarizing the changes along with CCHP’s analysis. One of the most notable updates in the final rule is CMS’ decision to finalize changes to the process used to evaluate which services to include on the Medicare Telehealth Services List. 

Read more about Medicare Fee Schedules and the Latest Telehealth Policies.

DEA Issues Fourth Temporary Extension of Telemedicine Flexibilities

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has issued a fourth temporary extension of the COVID-19 telemedicine flexibilities that allow clinicians to prescribe controlled substances without an initial in-person visit. While the DEA has not yet released the full text—including the length of the extension—these flexibilities were set to expire at the end of 2025. Previous extensions have typically lasted one year, though the duration of this update is still unknown as the final rule remains under regulatory review.

Under the Ryan Haight Act, an in-person exam is normally required before prescribing controlled substances, with limited exceptions that do not cover most routine telehealth visits. The temporary extensions continue to pause that initial in-person requirement. More details will be shared once the DEA publishes the final text.

Read more about the temporary extension.