COMING SOON! Funding Opportunity for Delta Hospitals

March 14, 2023

COMING SOON! Funding Opportunity for Delta Hospitals

The Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) has a new funding opportunity coming soon.

Delta Health Systems Implementation Program

This program provides funding to critical access hospitals, small rural hospitals (inpatient prospective payment system facilities with up to 100 beds) in the Mississippi Delta region that have received previous technical assistance (TA) through the Delta Region Community Health Systems Development Program or another similar TA program within the last five years.

Hospitals will implement projects aimed to improve health care in rural areas through projects focused on:

  • Financial and operational improvements;
  • Implementation of quality improvement initiatives;
  • Expansion of telehealth services and financial/operational systems enhancements;
  • The development of new service lines to address the needs of the community, including populations in the community that have been historically underserved.

Visit grants.gov to learn more about this opportunity and to subscribe for updates. FORHP expects the notice of funding opportunity to be available by the end of March. 

Please note the application window will be shorter than typical.

 Interested applicants should start registrations in grants.gov and sam.gov ASAP.

 For questions, please reach out to Suzanne Snyder at ssnyder1@hrsa.gov.

 

Applications Being Accepted – Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project (RHPTP) 2023-2024 Project Year

December 15, 2022

Applications Being Accepted – Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project (RHPTP) 2023-2024 Project Year

The Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project is accepting applicants for the 2023-2024 project year!

The application has been simplified and should take no more than 10 minutes to complete. 

With the support of the Health Resources Services Administration’s Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP), the National Rural Health Resource Center provides selected small rural hospitals and rural health clinics technical assistance through the Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project (RHPTP). This project is designed to help strengthen their foundation in key elements of value-based care (VBC) including but not limited to efficiency, quality, patient experience, and safety of care.

RHPTP’s goal is to guide small rural hospitals and certified rural health clinics not currently participating in VBC to prepare for and position their organizations to be effective participants in a health system focused on value.

Additional Information

Teaching Health Center Planning and Development Program: HRSA-23-015

November 23, 2022

Teaching Health Center Planning and Development Program

HRSA-23-015

The Teaching Health Center Planning and Development Program is a unique opportunity to establish new primary care medical and dental residency programs in community-based ambulatory patient care centers in underserved and rural communities. Recent research has demonstrated that residents with rural exposure during residency training are associated with a 5 to 6-fold likelihood of practicing in rural. However, unlike hospital-based residency programs that rely primarily on Medicare funding, many teaching health centers receive federal funding through HRSA’s Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (GME) program.

This two-year grant will award 47 grants, up to $500,000 each to eligible applicants, including Rural Health Clinics (RHC) or health centers operated by a tribal organization. Community-based ambulatory patient care centers (e.g., RHC) may also apply under a GME consortium model forming partnerships with stakeholders, such as Critical Access Hospital or medical schools to serve as an institutional sponsor for the residency program. Applications are due on grants.gov on December 12, 2022.

If you have further questions, please contact THC@hrsa.gov or read the FAQs here.

HRSA Rural Residency Planning and Development Program

November 1, 2022

HRSA Rural Residency Planning and Development Program (TA Webinar) – Thursday, November 3 at 1:00 pm ET.

HRSA will invest $11.25 million to support the creation of new rural residency programs or rural track programs to strengthen the rural physician workforce. Learn more about the upcoming funding opportunity and eligibility requirements by joining this 90-minute technical assistance webinar.

Applications for the HRSA Rural Residency Planning and Development Program are due January 27, 2023.

Missouri Rural Stakeholders Engagement Meeting

November 2,02022

Missouri Rural Stakeholders Engagement Meeting – November 29, 11 am CT.

In collaboration with the Missouri Rural Health Association, HRSA IEA Region 7 invites partners and stakeholders to participate in quarterly engagement meetings to receive information on programs, technical resources, and funding opportunities available to rural organizations. These meetings are also an opportunity for participants to hear from and network with various federal and state agencies and organizations serving rural communities. The Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) will join us to highlight policy updates regarding the Rural Emergency Hospital provider designation and opportunities for technical assistance.

To attend this virtual meeting, register here.

2022 Rural Health Equity and Quality Summit

September 29, 2022

2022 Rural Health Equity and Quality Summit

With the support of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy, the National Rural Health Resource Center’s Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project (RHPTP) held a virtual summit in June 2022. The Rural Health Equity and Quality Summit convened nationally recognized content experts in rural health care policy, health equity, value-based care, and clinical quality to explore the role small rural hospitals and rural health clinics play in achieving health equity. 

The Summit Report will assist rural hospitals, clinics, and network leaders on their path to value-based care and alternative payment models by offering actionable steps on how to maximize available resources and data, and provide solutions for achieving rural health equity.

Read the Full Report

HRSA Funding Opportunities

Date: August 25, 2022

Rural Health Network Development Program (Application Due Date: November 22, 2022) – The Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) will be making approximately 44 awards of up to $300,000 each for the 2023 Rural Health Network Development (RHND) Program. This four-year program will support integrated health care networks who collaborate to achieve efficiencies; expand access to, coordinate, and improve the quality of basic health care services and associated health outcomes; and strengthen the rural health care system as a whole. HRSA intends for the RHND Program to address gaps in service, enhance systems of care, and expand capacity of the local rural health care system.

Eligible organizations must be located in a domestic public or private, non-profit or for-profit entities, including faith-based, community-based, tribes and tribal organizations. The applicant organization may be located in a rural or urban area, but must have demonstrated experience serving, or the capacity to serve, rural underserved populations. The applicant organization must represent a network that includes at least three or more health care provider organizations and, at least 66% (or two-thirds) of network members must be located in a HRSA-designated rural area.

FORHP will hold a webinar for applicants on Wednesday September 7, 2022 from 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EST / 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM CST. Log-in information is below:

Review the NOFO at: https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?keywords=hrsa-23-030.

Healthy Tomorrows Partnership for Children Program (HTPCP) – Applications are due October 12, 2022 at 11:59 PM ET. The purpose of the program is to support community-based partnerships and collaborations aimed at promoting access to health care for under-resourced and underserved children, youth, and their families nationwide, through the implementation and evaluation of new or enhanced community-based projects and models of care. Recipients will implement community-based projects incorporating evidence-informed or evidence-based strategies or innovations to increase access to health care and preventive health services in rural and other underserved populations. An application webinar was held on Friday, July 29, 2022. To view the recording, go here.

AmeriCorps Grants Will Focus on Evidence-Based InterventionsNonprofit organizations, tribes, and local governments are eligible for the next round of grants from AmeriCorps, the federal agency for community service and volunteerism. The funding for 2023 will prioritize evidence-based interventions proven to work in communities with concentrated poverty and/or historically underrepresented and underserved individuals. The programs present a unique opportunity for organizations who work in rural to help support public and community health and create potential career pathways while also addressing longstanding workforce capacity challenges. The deadline to apply for federal grants is January 4, 2023. Single-state applicant deadlines to State Commissions may be significantly earlier.

American Heart Association Rural Health Care Outcomes Accelerator – Ongoing. The three-year initiative is designed to eliminate health disparities with learning collaboratives and professional education for hospitals and clinicians. The national nonprofit will support up to 700 rural hospitals at no cost. 

2023 Rural Health Network Development (RHND) Program

Date: August 23, 2022

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of Minority Health (CMS OMH) would like to share this message on behalf of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP).

HRSA FORHP will be making approximately 44 awards of up to $300,000 each for the 2023 Rural Health Network Development (RHND) Program. This four-year program will support integrated health care networks who collaborate to achieve efficiencies; expand access to, coordinate, and improve the quality of basic health care services and associated health outcomes; and strengthen the rural health care system as a whole. HRSA intends for the RHND Program to address gaps in service, enhance systems of care, and expand capacity of the local rural health care system.

The RHND Program will focus on the following four program domains:

  • Improve access: by addressing gaps in care, workforce shortages, better workflows and/or improving the quality of health care services
  • Expand capacity and services: by creating effective systems through the development of knowledge, skills, structures, and leadership models
  • Enhance outcomes: by improving patient and/or network development outcomes through expanding or strengthening the network’s services, activities or interventions
  • Sustainability: by positioning the network to prepare for sustainable health programs through value-based care and population health management.

Eligible organizations must be located in a domestic public or private, non-profit or for-profit entities, including faith-based, community-based, tribes and tribal organizations. The applicant organization may be located in a rural or urban area, but must have demonstrated experience serving, or the capacity to serve, rural underserved populations. The applicant organization must represent a network that includes at least three or more health care provider organizations and, at least 66% (or two-thirds) of network members must be located in a HRSA-designated rural area.

As FORHP continues to focus on sharing program outcomes, the identification and dissemination of rural evidence-based models maintains a priority. The Rural Health Information Hub (RHI hub) consists of a number of resources, including successful program models and evidence-based toolkits.

FORHP will hold a webinar for applicants on Wednesday September 7, 2022 from 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EST. Log-in information is below:

  • Weblink
  • Call-In Number: 1-833-568-8864
  • Meeting ID: 14653038

A recording will be made available for those who cannot attend.

Review the NOFO.

Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) Announcements

Date: June 16, 2022

HRSA Rural Communities Opioid Response Program – Medication-Assisted Treatment Access – Applications Due July 29. The Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Federal Office of Rural Health Policy will make approximately 10 awards of up to $1 million per year to establish new access points for Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) in rural areas. Applicants can be any public or private, non-profit, or for-profit entity, but the proposed MAT access points must be located in HRSA-designated rural areas and cannot currently provide MAT as a clinical service. To learn more, join a webinar for applicants on Thursday, June 23 at 2:00 pm. Registration is not required, and a recording will be made available for those who cannot attend. Join by phone: 1-833-568-8864; Participant Code: 160 096 3647.

New Public Health AmeriCorps is Recruiting. In April, the federal AmeriCorps joined with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to announce a new and ongoing investment in recruitment and training for careers in public health at the local level. In its first year, the new initiative is expected to recruit 3,000 members who will learn from the expertise and best practices of existing CDC, AmeriCorps and other public health programs. Applications are being accepted for organizations in each state; many are directing efforts to rural areas that have been underserved. 

Access to Primary Care: HRSA’s Innovation ChallengeLast week, HRSA announced a national competition with a total of $1 million in cash prizes for low-cost, scalable solutions that improve patient access to primary care and link health care to social services. The competition is open to broad public participation, including individuals, groups, health care organizations, and other entities. Submissions for phase 1 are due Tuesday, August 2nd. For more information, join an upcoming webinar on Wednesday, June 29 at 3:00 pm

HHS Allows for Audio-Only Telehealth. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) issued guidance stating that audio-only telemedicine appointments comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, also known as HIPAA, as long as providers take measures to protect patient privacy. HHS’s Office of Civil Rights says that this is an important tool for reaching people in rural areas with limited internet access, and/or those who are unable to use video. 

Telehealth Use for Mental Health Patients in Rural Louisiana. Researchers looked at 7,069 telehealth visits that took place between April 2020 and March 2021 to determine what and how socioeconomic factors affected remote mental health services. Some findings were not surprising, e.g., telehealth use is lower among elderly patients, and help-seeking behavior is higher among women than men. But the study also found that intensity – the number of telehealth visits for each patient – varied by the nature of illness, presence of multiple chronic conditions, and discharge status. 

COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage by Race and Ethnicity, December 2020–November 2021. The latest Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report shows differences by geography (including rural/urban), age, household income, and health insurance status. Separately, a group of researchers asked rural Oklahomans about their perceptions of COVID-19 vaccines, and found that the most common reasons for hesitancy were their rapid development and lack of research about long-term effects. 

Ongoing: HRSA Payment Program for RHC Buprenorphine-Trained Providers. In June 2021, HRSA launched an effort to improve access to substance use disorder treatment by paying for providers who are waivered to prescribe buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid use disorder. Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) still have the opportunity to apply for a $3,000 payment on behalf of each provider who trained to obtain the waiver necessary to prescribe buprenorphine after January 1, 2019. Approximately $1.2 million in program funding remains available for RHCs and will be paid on a first-come, first-served basis until funds are exhausted. Send questions to DATA2000WaiverPayments@hrsa.gov. There is ongoing availability of a free online course for waiver eligibility training from the American Osteopathic Academy of Addiction Medicine and the Providers Clinical Support System.

Notice of Funding Opportunity: Rural Communities Opioid Response Program-Medication-Assisted Treatment Access

Date: June 13, 2022

Notice of Funding Opportunity: Rural Communities Opioid Response Program-Medication-Assisted Treatment Access

Application Deadline: Friday, July 29, 2022

The Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) will be making approximately 10 awards of up to $1,000,000 per year (3-year period of performance) for the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program-Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) Access. The goal of this program is to improve health care in rural areas by establishing new MAT access points and increasing the capacity for sustainable MAT service provision in rural areas.

FORHP will host a webinar for interested applicants on Thursday, June 23, 2022 at 2:00 PM ET, via Zoom. A recording will be made available for those who cannot attend. You can also join the webinar via phone: Call-In Number: 1-833-568-8864; Participant Code: 160 096 3647.

Note:  Registration is not required for this webinar.

Applicants can be any domestic public or private, non-profit or for-profit, entity, but the proposed MAT access points must be located in HRSA-designated rural areas and cannot currently provide MAT as a clinical service. 

* Please note: HRSA requires that applicants partner with at least two other entities to implement project activities, and has a particular interest in projects that propose to include correctional facilities and/or emergency departments to enhance discharge coordination. Award recipients will also be expected to participate in a Learning Collaborative, to facilitate peer-to-peer mentorship, and to sustain services after the period of performance ends.

To learn more about the program – and to apply – please visit the Notice of Funding Opportunity.

If you have any questions about the program, please contact Anna Swanson: ruralopioidresponse@hrsa.gov or 301.443.2398.