The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) appropriated $200 million in funding for the School Based Health Center Capital Program (SBHCC) to make capital improvements to school-based health centers (SBHCs) across the country. While the ACA funds have all been obligated, evidence clearly shows that providing access to health services within a school environment dramatically improves health outcomes for children and families.  The huge success of SBHCs and this specific program has the potential to lead to annual funding available through the Health Resources and Services Administration.

Join Grants Office and special guests from Cisco as we discuss:

• The latest information on the future of federal funding for SBHCs and their capital improvement projects

• Specific strategies and tips for positioning a winning application to HRSA through SBHCC or any future programming

• Writing technology and equipment, such as telehealth capabilities into SBHCC proposals

• Leveraging national, regional and local foundations for SBHC projects

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 established and appropriated $10 billion over the next decade to the Prevention and Public Health Fund.  As a result, many grant programs are flowing out of this pot of funding in an effort to initiate community-wide approaches to healthy changes in weight, nutrition, physical activity, tobacco use,  and emotional/mental well-being.  While many of the programs target local and state public health departments, health care providers and other non-profits may benefit through partnership, contracts, or sub-grants.

Join Grants Office and special guests from Cisco as we discuss:

• Positioning projects for specific grant programs, such as Prevention and Public Health Fund Coordinated Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Program and the Public Prevention Health Fund: Community Transformation Grants

• Integrating technology and equipment into projects and proposals, including chronic disease management tracking software and other mHealth solutions

• Examples of previously funded projects

• Tips for successful community-wide collaboration amongst local governments (public health departments), providers, patients and policy-makers.

Every year the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) makes almost $1 billion available to health care providers and local public health departments across the country through the Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP) and Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) Cooperative Agreements Program.  Although historically separate, HHS combined the programs under one umbrella for the first time in 2012 to ensure a systematic approach to emergency preparedness and response across the health spectrum.  The HPP/PHEP funding source remains the primary mechanism for hospitals and local public health departments to prepare and respond to natural, man-made and terrorism-related disasters.

Join Grants Office and special guests from Cisco as we discuss:

• Background on the merging of HPP and PHEP and its alignment with Department of Homeland Security anti-terrorism funding

• The purpose of HPP/PHEP funding and the various preparedness and response capabilities that awardees must enhance with the funding

• Examples of state pass-through mechanisms for HPP/PHEP funds

• Integration of Information Technology and other equipment into HPP/PHEP projects

At some level, almost every current provider is involved with health professional education and training. The time when these responsibilities were solely left to institutions of higher education is long gone. New technology combined with health professional shortages require providers and educators alike to adapt to a constantly evolving landscape. Health systems must find ways to deliver specific training and continuing education programs to a workforce that is spread across numerous sites and communities. Formal degree-granting institutions struggle to fund the latest and greatest distance learning and simulation equipment necessary to properly engage their health professional students. The good news is that federal and foundation funding is available to help address these issues, particularly in the context of overcoming health professional shortages, increasing capacity, and improving care.

Every year HRSA makes billions of dollars available for community health centers across the country to deliver care in underserved communities.  This includes funding for direct health care services, establishing new service sites (New Access Points) and capital infrastructure.  Funding is targeted to clinics that serve medically underserved populations (MUPs) or patients in areas defined as being health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) or medically underserved communities/areas (MUCs/MUAs).
Join Grants Office and special guests from Cisco as we discuss funding available to Federally Qualified Health Centers (FHQCs) and other Section 330 Facilities, including:
• Background information on FQHC-designation and eligibility requirements
• Positioning projects for specific grant programs, such as New Access Points, ACA Capital Development: Building Capacity Grant Program, and ACA Capital Development: Immediate Facility Improvements
• Integrating technology and equipment needs into a funding proposal
• Tips and other suggestions for developing a proposal that is comprehensive, compelling and competitive.

October 1, 2012 marks the start of a new fiscal year. A review of the FY 2013 budget would indicate that healthcare will again be at the forefront of grant funding opportunities. Funds will continue to flow from the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) as well as from annual grants, incentive packages, and new programs offered for the first time in 2013. Given the short 4-6 week window between grant announcement and deadline, gaining insight into forecasted funding opportunities is a critical step in the planning process for health care entities that are seeking funds from federal, state, and even private sector sources.

Every year, healthcare providers have access to billions of dollars in federal grant funding to carry out important projects. In fact, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently made $1 billion available for projects that transform healthcare through innovations in service delivery and payment modeling. In order to compete for these types of funds, applicants must create projects that are truly innovative in addressing care delivery, thereby improving health outcomes and patient safety indicators.

The healthcare industry is finally catching up with the technologies deployed in other sectors. The proliferation of electronic medical records, telehealth networks, health information exchange interfaces and the growing popularity of computers, tablets, smartphones and other devices are making mobile healthcare (mHealth) a reality. Providers can use mHealth technology to improve communication with patients, closely monitor their conditions, and reduce costs associated with recurring traditional office-based visits and expensive emergency room encounters. Unfortunately, mHealth projects can be expensive due to high up-front costs associated with equipment acquisition and limited reimbursement available to providers from various public and private payers.

Many organizations do not have the manpower or internal resources to target and capitalize on large competitive federal grants. Alternatively, an organization may be leveraging federal grant dollars, but has failed to explore other options. In either case, earmarks (also known as pork-barrel funding) and foundations remain a viable funding source for many projects in the health sector. Engaging congressional representatives (for earmarks) and foundations is relatively straightforward compared to federal grant programs and often times the proposal development and review process is much more streamlined. If you are looking to take advantage of the "lower hanging fruit" on the funding tree or a quicker turnaround time on funding decisions, it is essential to explore earmarks and foundations. Join Grants Office Grants Development Consultant Christopher LaPage as he provides an overview of earmark and foundation funding opportunities geared towards health care organizations. In addition, participants will gain an in-depth understanding of the process and timeline for engaging these important funding opportunities.

Healthcare in Rural America is under intense scrutiny as recent academic studies suggest the level of care provided at rural health facilities lags significantly behind their urban counterparts. Rural healthcare institutions, like critical access hospitals and rural health clinics, typically operate on negative operating income and lack essential human and capital resources to provide the highest quality of care possible. The silver lining is that rural healthcare organizations are not only a prime fit, but targeted for many grant opportunities because of the well-documented need they can demonstrate. Rural health care organizations have the potential to pull down grant funding for initiatives that include, but are not limited to, capital construction, equipment acquisition, infrastructure updates, personnel, workforce development, health information technology, and chronic disease management programs. Join Grants Office Grants Development Consultant Christopher LaPage as he provides insight into the plethora of grant opportunities available to rural healthcare organizations. In addition to reviewing specific grant opportunities, participants will walk away with some practical strategies for leveraging external resources in their grantseeking efforts.

Every year there is more than $400 billion dollars allocated to grant programs during the federal budgeting process. The Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for distributing a large portion of these dollars for projects in the health sector. In addition to annual grant funding, we are going to see more funding opportunities for health initiatives in 2011 thanks to the passage of health reform legislation (also known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act). With health care organizations operating on thinner margins than ever before, it is the perfect time to make grantseeking a critical component of your organization's financial strategy. In order to take advantage of these funding sources, you need to know what is coming down the pipeline and plan accordingly. Join Grants Office Grants Development Consultant Christopher LaPage as he provides a broad overview of the 2011 healthcare funding landscape. The discussion will include an overview of both annual and one-time grant programs authorized through the health reform legislation as well as tips for pulling down these funds.

Grants Office presents webcasts each month dedicated to providing relevant and timely grant funding information across various sectors. Browse through all scheduled webcasts, register now for topics of interest, and download past events if you were unable to attend!