Note: Year 1’s October 30 obligation deadline is behind us, and the states are now in award-announcement and Year 2 planning mode. If you want to know where Year 2 money lands before the solicitations post, peep RHTP Verified Intelligence.
In this issue:
Massachusetts posts the Q&A and a third amendment for its Rural Partners RFA: partners don’t have to be eligible, no budget required, due November 9
New Hampshire’s Foundation for Healthy Communities posts the transcript of its Critical Access Hospital (CAH) and Acute Care Hospital RFA information session: outside scorers, GO-NORTH approves, awards mid-December
North Carolina’s Trillium Health Resources moves six NC ROOTS RFAs to December award notification and puts four on hold
Massachusetts posts the Q&A and a third amendment for its Rural Partners RFA: partners don’t have to be eligible, no budget required, due November 9
EOHHS posted both on COMMBUYS November 2. An October 23 amendment had already moved the close to Monday, November 9 at 5:00 p.m. ET.
If you sell to Massachusetts applicants, this is the answer that matters:
A partner submitted in Attachment B does not need to be an eligible entity. The partner does not need to register on COMMBUYS.
Applicants submit one Attachment B per named partner, and an organization can apply on its own and be a partner on other applications. Only Initiative 7 asks for a cost estimate. Award amounts, consultant and subcontract costs, indirect costs and the payment method all get set after selection. Checking an activity box isn’t a commitment, and SAM.gov registration isn’t required.
Amendment 3 adds regional planning agencies and tribes to the rural CBO/SSO definition, and defines physical presence as “the actual, on‑the‑ground existence and activity of the organization or services in the rural defined location.” MeHI will contact applicants who check Activities 2.4, 2.5 or 6.1.
A correction to our October 12 item: the corrected Attachment A did change something. The original capped all 121 text fields at 100 characters. The corrected one caps 27.
New Hampshire‘s Foundation for Healthy Communities posts the transcript of its Critical Access Hospital (CAH) and Acute Care Hospital RFA information session: outside scorers, GO-NORTH approves, awards mid-December
We covered the RFA October 7: approximately $17.5 million, priority cohort deadline November 12 at 5:00 p.m. ET. The October 29 session adds who decides and when.
On scoring, from FHC’s Travis Boucher:
The foundation was going to be involved in the scoring, but we are actually working more into a facilitating role... we submit these to Go North and we do not have the authority to actually approve these awards.
Scorers are outside subject matter experts. Priority cohort awards are targeted for mid-December; rolling applicants hear back within 45 to 60 days. Budget Period 1 money spends through September 30, 2027.
The rest of what changed hands on the call:
One lead application per organization for Preparatory Investments and Program Ready; Project Development applications are unlimited, and the three stages are scored as separate cohorts.
Indirect plus administrative costs are capped at 10% combined.
The sustainability and long-term value answer now runs 800 words.
CMS has told FHC it does not need to review each equipment purchase, though grantees still track them.
Value-based care was pulled out of this RFA for a separate technical assistance effort with the hospital association.
Two vendor-shaped questions came in: assistive and smart-home monitoring technology (deferred, not answered) and clinician peer-support programs across critical access hospitals (answered generically: partnerships and regional scope score well).
