DHHS Division/Office issuing this notice: Office of Rural Health
Date of this notice: April 12, 2019
Working Title of the funding program: Small Rural Hospital Improvement Program Grant
Purpose- description of function of the program and reason why it was created:
First authorized through the Balanced Budget Refinement Act of 1999, the Small Rural Hospital Improvement Program (SHIP) is a federal grant program directed to State Offices of Rural Health to support rural hospitals with 49 beds or fewer. Funding helps small, rural hospitals in several ways:

• Purchasing equipment and/or training to attain the value-based purchasing provision under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA)
• Joining or becoming Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs), or creating Shared Savings programs through the ACA
• Purchasing health information technology, equipment, and/or training for payment bundling/prospective payments

Description- Brief statement of nature and scope of the program:
Over the last decade, the North Carolina Office of Rural Health has leveraged the funding available through SHIP to assist smaller hospitals across North Carolina with upgrading essential capital equipment, implementing new processes to deliver higher quality care, and transitioning to an increasingly electronic/digital working environment. This grant will continue to allow the 32 SHIP-eligible hospitals to implement technology and/or systems to collect data and feedback necessary for improving both quality of care and operations. The grant funds will be awarded to an eligible organization (see below for requirements) over to conduct the scope of work. The grantee will utilize these SHIP funds to:

1. Secure and manage subcontract agreements with participating SHIP hospitals
2. Ensure SHIP hospitals implement and/or participate in approved activities
3. Ensure SHIP hospitals report on required performance measures
4. Conduct quarterly performance assessments tracking hospitals’ progress in achieving the agreed-upon deliverables
5. Monitor financial invoices quarterly for appropriateness of expenses
6. Track and report each participating hospital’s status. Report successful completion of performance measures and achievements of target goals.

Funding Availability:
June 1, 2019 through May 31, 2020

Eligibility:
Any organization that employs staff that have experience working with small and rural hospitals in NC and knowledge of the Small Rural Hospital Improvement Program is eligible to apply.  All applicants will need to complete the grant application, budget template, contractor information sheet, and applicable contractor/provider documents to be considered for funding.

How to Apply:
Electronic applications should be emailed to: nick.galvez@dhhs.nc.gov

Deadline for Submission:
Grant applications must be received electronically at the email address above by 5:00 pm on Wednesday, April 26, 2019.  Only electronic copies will be accepted.

How to Obtain Further Information:
Questions regarding the grant application may be directed to nick.galvez@dhhs.nc.gov or by telephone at 919-527-6467.

Supporting grant documents below:
DHHS Notice of Funding 2019 release.doc 
SHIP RFA Application 2019 release.doc
SHIP RFA Budget 2019 release.xls
SHIP RFA Instructions 2019 release.doc