New Funding Opportunity – Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program for Paraprofessionals, Apply by March 18

January 22, 2025

New Funding Opportunity – Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program for Paraprofessionals, Apply by March 18

The purpose of the Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program for Paraprofessionals – HRSA-25-066 is to develop and expand community-based experiential training such as field placements and internships to increase the skills, knowledge and capacity of students preparing to become mental health workers, peer support specialists, and other behavioral health paraprofessionals.

The program has a special focus on developing knowledge and understanding of the needs of children, adolescents, and transitional age youth who have experienced trauma and are at risk for behavioral health disorders including anxiety, depression, and substance use disorder.

Eligible applicants include:

  • Faith-based and community-based organizations
  • Hospitals
  • HRSA funded health centers and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs)
  • Public and private institutions of higher education
  • Rural health clinics
  • State, city, county, township, and special district governments
  • State-licensed mental health nonprofit and for-profit organizations
  • Tribal governments and tribal organizations

Please view the NOFO on Grants.gov for complete eligibility information.

Apply by March 18, 2025, 11:59 p.m. ET

Click Here to Learn More and Apply

New Funding Opportunity – HRSA Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies (Rural MOMS) Program, Apply by April 22

January 22, 2025

New Funding Opportunity – HRSA Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies (Rural MOMS) Program, Apply by April 22

The Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies (Rural MOMS) Program from the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA’s) Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) is open and accepting applications for the program’s 4-year period of performance (September 30, 2025 – September 29, 2029).

Rural MOMS funds networks that establish or continue collaborative improvement and innovative models that can provide long-term sustainable and financially viable service delivery to improve maternal and infant health outcomes. The work of these networks supports the goal of the program to improve maternal and infant health outcomes and access to and delivery of maternity and obstetrics care in rural areas and reduce preventable maternal mortality risks and decrease severe maternal morbidity in rural areas.

A technical assistance webinar via Zoom is scheduled for applicants on Wednesday, February 12, at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Click Here to see examples of previously funded projects under this program.

For more information about this funding opportunity, contact RMOMS@hrsa.gov.

Apply by April 22, 2025.

Click Here to learn more and apply

Notice of Funding Opportunity: HRSA Rural Program of All-Inclusive for the Elderly Planning and Development

January 21, 2025

Notice of Funding Opportunity: HRSA Rural Program of All-Inclusive for the Elderly Planning and Development

The Rural Program of All-Inclusive for the Elderly (PACE) Planning and Development grant is open and accepting applications for the program’s 4-year period of performance (September 30, 2025 – September 29, 2029). The purpose of this program is to improve health care in rural areas, including expanding access to medical care and long-term services, for rural aging populations by expanding PACE programs into rural areas.

Program Goals:

  • Provide start-up funding for organizations to develop a new PACE site serving the aging rural population.
  • Provide funding for organizations to expand existing PACE programs into rural areas through service area expansion.
  • Implement sustainable PACE programs that will effectively serve critical health care needs for rural aging populations.

This funding will support organizations to develop an initial PACE program or expand an existing PACE organization into rural areas.

HRSA will make up to 4 awards, up to $500,000 per year, to provide resources to assist with the development of an initial Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (DMS) PACE program serving HRSA-designated rural areas or to expand an existing certified CMS PACE programs into HRSA-designated rural areas through PACE service area expansion.

Eligible Applicants

  • Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
  • Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
  • For profit organizations other than small businesses
  • Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
  • Small businesses
  • Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with th IRS, other than institutions of higher education
  • Independent school districts
  • Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
  • Private institutions of higher education
  • City or township governments
  • County governments
  • State governments
  • Special district governments
  • State and county health departments,
  • Hospitals
  • FQHCs
  • Rural Health Clinics

Click Here to Learn More and Apply

For more information about this funding opportunity, contact RuralPACE@hrsa.gov

New Funding Available: Rural Residency Planning and Development Program, Apply by April 10, 2025

January 13, 2025

New Funding Available: Rural Residency Planning and Development Program, Apply by April 10, 2025

The Rural Residency Planning and Development (RRPD) Program, HRSA-25-007, is open and accepting applications for the program’s 3-year period of performance (August 1, 2025 – July 31, 2028). The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) will make up to 15 awards, each up to $750,000, to improve and expand access to health care in rural areas by developing new sustainable rural residency programs, including rural track programs (RTPs).

Eligible applicants include all domestic public and private, nonprofit or for-profit, entities. Applicants must propose a new rural residency program in a qualifying medical specialty.

Qualifying medical specialties are:

  • Family medicine
  • Internal medicine
  • Preventive medicine
  • Psychiatry
  • General surgery, and
  • Obstetrics and gynecology

For this notice of funding opportunity, rural residency programs are accredited physician residency programs, train residents in clinical training sites that are physically located in a rural area as defined by HRSA’s Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) for greater than 50 percent of their total time in residency and focus on producing physicians who will practice in rural communities.

Successful RRPD Program awardees will:

  1. Develop a new rural residency program that is accredited by Accreditation Council for Graduated Medical Education;
  2. Finalize a sustainability plan, which includes ongoing funding streams to sustain long-term resident training after program establishment; and
  3. Develop a plan to track and publicly report on resident career outcomes after graduation for at least 5 years after the first graduating class to assess retention in rural communities.

Click Here to Learn More

Click Here to attend a technical assistance webinar, via Zoom, on Wednesday, January 23, 2:00 p.m. ET

A list of previously funded grants under this program are available here.

Applicants may also benefit from the resources and tools in the RuralGME.org portal (registration required).

For questions about this funding opportunity email: ruralresidency@hrsa.gov.

Upcoming Webinar: Improving Patient Engagement in Cervical Cancer Prevention, January 16

January 10, 2025

Upcoming Webinar: Improving Patient Engagement in Cervical Cancer Prevention, January 16

January is Cervical Health Awareness Month. Join the Maternal and Child Health Bureau for an hour-long session to learn about a new toolkit to improve patient engagement in cervical cancer prevention.

The toolkit supports efforts to increase patient and community engagement in cervical cancer prevention, screening, and management. The toolkit as designed to meet the needs of health centers and safety-net settings and may be useful to other health care organizations that are committed to preventing cervical cancer.

Click Here to download the toolkit and supporting documentation.

Webinar Cost: Free

Webinar Date: Thursday, January 16, 2:00 p.m. ET

Click Here to Register

Webinar: 2025 Physician Fee Schedule – Registration Required, January 30

January 10, 2025

Webinar: 2025 Physician Fee Schedule – Registration Required, January 30

Subject matter experts from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will present highlights of policy updates from the Calendar Year 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule final rule.

Covered topics will include:

  • General care management,
  • Advanced Primary Care Management,
  • Telehealth,
  • Policy updates for Rural Health Clinics and Federally Qualified Health Centers,
  • Behavioral health,
  • Dental services, and more.

The webinar is FREE but registration is required.

When: Thursday, January 30, 2:00 p.m.

Click Here to Register

Webinar: The Latest HIPAA Requirements – A Check-in on Your RHC’s Compliance, January 14

January 10, 2025

Webinar: The Latest HIPAA Requirements – A Check-in on Your RHC’s Compliance, January 14

The National Association of Rural Health Clinics (NARHC) will host the free, FORHP-supported webinar with information for Rural Health Clinic (RHC) HIPAA compliance and updates.

HIPAA compliance is an integral component of your RHC’s compliance, but the complexity of the rules and frequent changes can make it especially challenging.

This webinar will help you check-in on your RHC’s compliance with the latest HIPAA requirements, featuring a health law expert with decades of experience.

Cost: Free

When: Tuesday, January 14, 2:00 p.m. ET

Click Here to Register

HIPAA Security Rule Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to Strengthen Cybersecurity for Electronic Protected Health Information, Comment by March 7

January 10, 2025

HIPAA Security Rule Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to Strengthen Cybersecurity for Electronic Protected Health Information, Comment by March 7

On January 6, 2025, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a proposed rule to modify the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Security Rule to strengthen cybersecurity protections for electronic protected health information.

The proposal will strengthen the Security Rule’s standards and implementation specifications with new proposals and clarifications. This rule will impact hospitals, providers, health plans, and any other entity that use or transmit electronic protected health information. Comments are due by March 7, 2025.

Click Here to Read More and Make Comment

Upcoming Webinar Series – Improving Preventive Care in Early Childhood, March 3

January 8, 2025

Upcoming Webinar Series – Improving Preventive Care in Early Childhood, March 3

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) launched this new webinar series. It focuses on opportunities for state Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) programs to improve delivery of developmental and lead screenings, immunizations, and early oral health interventions during well-child visits in early childhood. The webinar series will be followed by an action-oriented affinity group in the spring of 2025.

Who should attend:

  • State Medicaid and CHIP programs staff,
  • Pediatric providers,
  • Public health agencies,
  • Quality Improvement partners,

Click Here to visit the Improving Well-Child Care website for more information.

Please submit any questions to the quality improvement technical assistance mailbox: MACQualityImprovement@mathmatica-mpr.com

Cost: Free

When:

  • Monday, March 3, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m., State Medicaid and CHIP Experiences Promoting Preventive Care through Well-Child Visits in Early Childhood
  • Monday, March 31, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m., Overview of the Improving Preventive Care in Early Childhood Affinity Group and Expression of Interest Process
  • Monday, April 14, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m., Addressing Barriers to Well-Child Visits and Preventive Care: Promising Approaches to Transportation in Medicaid and CHIP

Click Here to Register (you may register for one or all three in the series)

Upcoming Webinar – Supporting Perinatal Individuals Experiencing Substance Use Disorders: Strategies for Perinatal Care Professionals and Systems of Care

January 8, 2025

Upcoming Webinar – Supporting Perinatal Individuals Experiencing Substance Use Disorders: Strategies for Perinatal Care Professionals and Systems of Care

Join the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA’s) Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) for this roundtable webinar which will offer actionable strategies that support providers in delivering compassionate, comprehensive care.

This roundtable will address the stigma around mandatory reporting, which deters some pregnant and postpartum women from seeking care and provide insights on creating safe plans of care.

In addition, the session will highlight training opportunities, resources, and guidance on integrating substance use disorder care into workflows.

Attendees will learn about:

  • Barriers to care,
  • Solutions to improve access, and
  • The importance of educating providers on state-specific mandatory reporting.

Practical examples, such as “warm hands” and harm reduction strategies will be shared.

Cost: Free

When: Wednesday, January 15, 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. ET

Click Here to Register