Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Announcement

July 25, 2019

 

 What’s New

Awards to Support Rural Veterans.  The Rural Veterans Health Access Program funds three states to improve the access to needed health care services and improve the coordination of care for veterans living in rural areas. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has awarded grants of up to $300,000 per year for three years to the state offices of rural health in Oklahoma, Wyoming and Utah, that will work with providers and other partners. HRSA collaborates with the Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) and their Veterans Rural Health Resource Programs to ensure coordination between these community organizations and the VHA programs.

Funding Opportunities

Connecting Kids to Coverage: Outreach to AI/AN Children – Letters of Intent August 19.  The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will make 8-10 awards of up to $750,000 each to increase the enrollment and retention of eligible American Indian and Alaska Native children in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.  Eligible entities include tribes and tribal organizations operating a health program under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act and Indian Health Service providers. To find full application instructions on the link above: 1) click on the package tab, 2) select preview the opportunity package, and 3) click on the button that says download instructions.   A letter of intent, required for all applicants, is due on August 19.  The deadline for applications is September 16.

Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts Request for Proposals – Letters of Intent August 25.  The Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts (FORE), founded in 2018, is a non-profit organization solely focused on the opioid epidemic.  FORE is interested in projects from underserved communities that address barriers to treatment for certain populations, including rural, and increase access to care.  Proposals from state or local governments and 501(c)(3) charitable organizations must present the scope of specific projects that may include, for example, expanding the use of telehealth in rural settings or working with the criminal justice system for incarcerated or post-release individuals. Continue reading “Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Announcement”

Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Announcements

July 18, 2019

What’s New

HRSA awards $20 million to 27 organizations to increase the rural workforce through the creation of new rural residency programs. Today, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) awarded approximately $20 million for Rural Residency Planning and Development Program (RRPD) grants. Recipients across 21 states will receive up to $750,000 over a three-year period to develop new rural residency programs while achieving accreditation through the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.

The RRPD program, administered by HRSA’s Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) and Bureau of Health Workforce (BHW), is part of a multi-year initiative by HRSA to expand the physician workforce in rural areas by developing new, sustainable residency programs in family medicine, internal medicine, and psychiatry. The recipients of the awards include rural hospitals, community health centers, health centers operated by the Indian Health Service, Indian tribes or tribal organizations, and schools of medicine. Rural residency programs often face challenges in securing sustainable financing and faculty support. The RRPD grant award funding will help recipients address these challenges. Continue reading “Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Announcements”

Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Announcements

July 11, 2019

What’s New

States Awarded for High-Performing Rural Hospitals.  This morning, HRSA’s Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) recognized ten states as top performers in their work to improve the quality of care at rural hospitals.  The states – Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Michigan, Utah, Alabama, Nebraska, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, and Wisconsin – have engaged in the FORHP-funded Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP), a project across 45 states designed to help federally-designated Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) improve patient outcomes through quality reporting. Before this project, there was no federal program focused on helping these low volume hospitals prioritize quality reporting and improvement. MBQIP sets rural-specific measures for quality and provides technical assistance and resources to help CAHs improve.

New Network Planning Grants Awarded.  The Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) is pleased to announce over $2.4M has been awarded to 25 rural community healthcare organizations in Fiscal Year 2019 for the new competitive funding cycle of the Rural Health Network Development Planning (Network Planning) Program. The Network Planning Program is a one-year grant program designed to promote the planning and development of integrated health care networks, specifically network participants who do not have a history of formal collaborative efforts in order to achieve efficiencies; expand access to, coordinate, and improve the quality of essential health care services; and strengthen the rural health care system as a whole. Continue reading “Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Announcements”