The Outreach Program is a community-based grant program aimed towards promoting rural health care services by enhancing health care delivery in rural communities. Outreach projects focus on the improvement of access to services, strategies for adapting to changes in the health care environment, and overall enrichment of the respective community's health. Through a consortia of local health care and social service providers, rural communities can develop innovative approaches to challenges related to their specific health needs. Furthermore, the program creates an opportunity to address the key clinical priorities of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): serious mental illness, substance abuse, and childhood obesity. The overarching goals for the Outreach Program are to:
- Expand the delivery of health care services to include new and enhanced services exclusively in rural communities;
- Deliver health care services through a strong consortium, in which every consortium member organization is actively involved and engaged in the planning and delivery of services;
- Utilize and/or adapt an evidence-based or promising practice model(s) in the delivery of health care services; and
- Improve population health, and demonstrate health outcomes and sustainability
In addition to funding Outreach programs through the Regular Outreach track, in FY 21, FORHP will also afford applicants a unique opportunity to take part in a national effort that targets rural health disparities through a second track called the Healthy Rural Hometown Initiative.” In 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Rural Health Task Force developed the Healthy Rural Hometown Initiative (HRHI). The HRHI is an effort that seeks to address the underlying factors that are driving growing rural health disparities related to the five leading causes of avoidable death (heart disease, cancer, unintentional injury/substance use, chronic lower respiratory disease, and stroke).
Recognizing the link between health disparities and the five leading causes of death in rural communities, the HRHI track is ideal for applicants who want to identify and bridge the gap between social determinants of health and other systemic issues that contribute to achieving health equity with regards to excess death. For this reason, given the past success of Outreach grants, FORHP strongly encourages applicants to pursue the HRHI track, if it aligns with their community needs. FORHP intends to fund approximately 15 HRHI applicants and HRSA will select top ranked applications from the HRHI track and the Regular Outreach track when making funding decisions.
Previously funded Outreach grant programs have brought care to over 2 million rural citizens across the country who often face difficulty gaining access to care. For information regarding previous recipients of this award, please see: http://www.raconline.org/pdf/2012outreach_directory.pdf.
FY 2021 awards are available to view here: https://www.hrsa.gov/rural-health/grants/rural-community/outreach-program-awards.
Applicants are required to have the necessary policies, procedures, and financial controls in place to ensure that your organization complies with all legal requirements and restrictions applicable to the receipt of federal funding including statutory restrictions on use of funds for lobbying, executive salaries, gun control, abortion, etc. Like those for all other applicable grants requirements, the effectiveness of these policies, procedures, and controls is subject to audit.