Deadline: 14-Jan-22
The North Carolina (NC) Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) is inviting applications for the 2023 Community Health Grant Program.
These grant funds, supported through the North Carolina General Assembly, are for assuring access to primary and preventive care to meet the health needs of vulnerable, underserved and medically indigent patients, with emphasis on providing primary and preventative medical services to uninsured or medically indigent patients .
An important component of this work is to strengthen the safety net through increased levels of collaboration and integration of services to sustain and meet the needs of those served more effectively. When an eligible primary care medical home safety net organization provides integrated care, grant funding may also support dental, pharmacy, and behavioral health services.
Primary care safety net organizations who care for underserved and medically indigent patients in North Carolina are eligible to apply for this funding to pay for patient care through encounter-based reimbursement (Track A) or through reimbursement for eligible expenses (Track B). Telehealth services and equipment are eligible expenses in both tracks. Applicants must select ONE track.
- Track A: Encounter-based reimbursement. Payment per patient encounter for low-income, uninsured, and underinsured residents, who do not have health care coverage or access to primary health care services. Visits are reimbursable for medically necessary, on-site, face-to-face provider encounters. Face-to-face encounters may also include telehealth patient encounters with a provider. Indirect costs are not eligible.
- NOTE – Per the Free Clinics Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) Program Policy Guide, grant funding that applies to reimbursement, payment, or compensation for the delivery of health services to patients falls within the statutory prohibition, while grant funding that is not intended for or applied to this purpose does not. Free clinics who are FTCA recipients that choose a “per encounter ‘reimbursement methodology may void their FTCA liability protection.
- Track B: Reimbursement for eligible expenses. Payment may include salary / fringe for clinical staff, medical / office supplies and equipment, and capital expenses, including equipment for telehealth services. Indirect costs are not eligible.
Funding information
- Maximum Award Amount: Applicants may request up to $ 150,000 per year of the grant.
- Proposed Project Period or Contract Term: State Fiscal Year 2023: July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023
Eligibility Criteria
- All primary care safety net organizations that currently provide direct primary and preventive care and serve as a medical home are eligible to apply. This includes:
- Federally Qualified Health Centers and Look-Alikes (FQHCs),
- Free and Charitable Clinics,
- Health Departments,
- Non-Profit, Hospital-Owned Primary Care Clinics,
- Rural Health Centers,
- School-Based and School-Linked Health Centers,
- AHEC Clinics,
- Other Non-Profit Community Organizations that provide direct primary and preventive patient care to low-income, uninsured, underinsured and medically vulnerable populations.
- Eligible organizations that currently provide direct primary and preventive care may use these funds to support any of the following:
- Health promotion, health maintenance, health counseling,
- Disease prevention,
- Patient education,
- Diagnosis and treatment of acute and chronic illnesses,
- Integrated care services (dental, pharmacy, behavioral health, care coordination / care management by a primary care entity),
- Women’s health, maternal and child health that supports health care services in a primary care setting,
- Collaborative, community-based, whole person-centered health care delivery models,
- Telehealth patient care,
- Community health workers.
- As a condition of receiving a grant award, successful applicants must:
- Complete the contract process.
- Submit a monthly expense report in a specified format for reimbursement.
- Submit performance measures and reports, established by the Office of Rural Health, throughout the grant term. Awardee will have an opportunity to share additional project specific quality measures to demonstrate health improvements.
- Use an electronic financial software application (EXCEL spreadsheets are not an acceptable format)
- Document collaborations among safety net and social support organizations specifying the distinct roles of each organization and the designated fiscal responsibilities.
- Connect to NC HealthConnex
For more information, visit https://www.ncdhhs.gov/about/grant-opportunities/rural-health-grant-opportunities/community-health-grant-fy-2023-rfa