Rural Northern Border Region Planning Program

For programmatic or technical questions:
Maribel Nunez
301.443.0466
MNunez@HRSA.gov

For grants management or budget questions:
Bria Haley
301.443.3778
Bhaley@hrsa.gov

The Rural Northern Border Region Planning Program will provide grants to support planning and identifying of key rural health issues within the service area of the Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC).

Activities should identify key rural health issues, assess rural health challenges, and engage in strategic planning activities to inform rural health plans across the northern border region. Projects may include planning activities that address challenges related to access to care and healthcare workforce or assist small rural hospitals improve their financial and operational performance.

Activities may include, but are not limited to:

• Needs assessment
• Formal strategic planning
• Hiring consultants and facilitators to support the planning efforts
• Developing infrastructure and capacity building
• Development of by-laws, Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), and formal network member agreements
• Identifying and developing strategies for rural hospitals to better address and meet regional and/or local population health needs

Eligible applicants are public and private, nonprofit and for-profit entities located in and with demonstrated experience serving, or the capacity to serve, rural underserved populations within the NBRC service area. Eligible applicants include faith-based organizations, community-based organizations, tribes, tribal organizations, and State Offices of Rural Health (SORH).

The applicant should represent a consortium of participants that:

1. Include 3 or more healthcare provider organizations
2. May be rural, urban, nonprofit or for-profit entities, with at least 66% of consortium members located in a HRSA-designated rural area

It is expected that one award will be made in each state of the NBRC service area.

Award ceiling: $190,000
Project period: 18 months
Estimated number of awards: 4
Estimated total program funding: $760,000

Links to the full announcement, application instructions, and the online application process are available through grants.gov. Additional application materials may be found in the related documents tab.