Maternal and Child Health Bureau; Special Project Grants; Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Services; Community Integrated Service Systems (CISS) Set-Aside Program; Community-Based Intervention Research Grants

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Resources and Services Administration

Maternal and Child Health Bureau; Special Project Grants;

Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Services; Community Integrated Service

Systems (CISS) Set-Aside Program; Community-Based Intervention Research

Grants

AGENCY: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

ACTION: Notice of availability of funds.

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SUMMARY: The HRSA announces that applications will be accepted for

fiscal year (FY) 1996 funds for Maternal and Child Health (MCH)

Community Integrated Service Systems (CISS) grants to support

community-based intervention research. The purpose of these projects is

to support research on CISS-sponsored early intervention services

programs in the context of developing and expanding local service

delivery systems. Awards are made under the program authority of

Section 502(b)(1)(A) of the Social Security Act, the CISS Federal Set-

Aside Program. Within the HRSA, CISS projects are administered by the

Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB).

About $900,000 will be available to support up to 3 new projects at

an average of about $300,000 per award per year. The actual amounts

available for awards and their allocation may vary, depending on the

volume and quality of applications. Awards are made for grant periods

of not more than 4 years in duration. Funds are appropriated by Public

Law 104-134.

The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving the

health promotion and disease prevention objectives of Healthy People

2000, a PHS-led national activity for setting priority areas. The CISS

Federal Set-Aside Program addresses issues related to the Healthy

People 2000 objectives of improving maternal, infant, child and

adolescent health and developing service systems for children with

special health care needs. Potential applicants may obtain a copy of

Healthy People 2000 (Full Report: Stock No. 017-001-00474-0) or Healthy

People 2000 (Summary Report: Stock No. 017-001-00473-1) through the

Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC

20402-9325 (telephone: 202 783-3238).

The PHS strongly encourages all grant recipients to provide a

smoke-free workplace and promote the non-use of all tobacco products.

In addition, Public Law 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of 1994,

prohibits smoking in certain facilities (or in some cases, any portion

of a facility) in which regular or routine education, library, day

care, health care or early childhood development services are provided

to children.

ADDRESSES: Grant applications for MCH research and training grants must

be obtained from and submitted to: Chief, Grants Management Branch,

Office of Operations and Management, Maternal and Child Health Bureau,

Health Resources and Services Administration, Room 18-12, Parklawn

Building, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857, (301) 443-1440.

Applicants for these projects will use application Form PHS 398 (Rev.

5/95), approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 0925-0001.

An MCHB supplement, with instructions specifically applicable to

Community-Based Intervention Research Grants, is included in the

application package, which can be obtained from the address given

above. You must obtain application materials in the mail.

Federal Register notices and application guidance for MCHB programs

are available on the World Wide Web via the Internet at address: http:/

/www.os.dhhs.gov/hrsa/mchb. Click on the file name you want to download

to your computer. It will be saved as a self-extracting (Macintosh or)

Wordperfect 5.1 file. To decompress the file once it is downloaded,

type in the file name followed by a . The file will expand to a

Wordperfect 5.1 file. If you have difficulty accessing the MCHB Home

Page via the Internet and need technical assistance, please contact

Linda L. Schneider at 301-443-0767 or ``[email protected]''.

DATES: Potential applicants are invited to request application packages

and to submit their applications for funding consideration. The

application deadline is August 26, 1996.

[[Page 36070]]

Applications will be considered to have met the deadline if they

are either: (1) received on or before the deadline date, or (2)

postmarked on or before the deadline date and received in time for

orderly processing. Applicants should request a legibly dated receipt

from a commercial carrier or the U.S. Postal Service, or obtain a

legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark. Private metered postmarks

will not be accepted as proof of timely mailing. Late applications or

those sent to an address other than specified in the ADDRESS section

will be returned to the applicant.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For programmatic or technical

information, contact Dr. Gontran Lamberty, Director, MCH Research

Program, Research and Training Branch, MCHB, 5600 Fishers Lane, Room

18A-55, Rockville, MD 20857, telephone: 301 443-2190. For information

concerning business management issues, contact Ms. Constance Davenport,

Grants Management Branch, MCHB, Room 18-12, 5600 Fishers Lane,

Rockville, MD, telephone 301 443-1440.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

1. Program Background and Objectives

The purpose of the Community-Based Intervention Research Grant

projects covered by this announcement is to generate new knowledge on

early intervention services models and on how to integrate these models

into existing systems of care at the community level while sustaining

the essential nature and demonstrated effectiveness of the original

prototypes.

Intervention is the name given to a variety of programs and

clinical management approaches designed to improve adverse conditions

in individuals and groups or prevent or limit these conditions. From

the standpoint of research, interventions are scientific experiments in

which an investigator, through a particular effort, treatment, or

program, seeks to purposively influence an outcome or outcomes in an

individual or group under controlled conditions. Intervention studies

may also be viewed as prospective, formal investigations of prototypes

of programs or subcomponents of programs (e.g., outreach, one-stop

shopping or home visiting). These prototypes, if proven effective under

controlled conditions, are then ready for further testing and

refinement in real-life settings.

2. Special Concerns

In its administration of the MCH Services Block Grant, the MCHB

places special emphasis on improving service delivery to women and

children from racial and ethnic minority populations who have had

limited access to accessible care. This means that CISS projects are

expected to serve and appropriately involve in project activities

individuals from the populations to be served, unless there are

compelling programmatic or other justifications for not doing so. The

MCHB's intent is to ensure that project interventions are responsive to

the cultural and linguistic needs of special populations, that services

are accessible to consumers, and that the broadest possible

representation of culturally distinct and historically underrepresented

groups is supported through programs and projects sponsored by the

MCHB. This same special emphasis applies to improving service delivery

to children with special health care needs.

In keeping with the goals of advancing the development of human

potential, strengthening the Nation's capacity to provide high quality

education by broadening participation in MCHB programs of institutions

that may have perspectives uniquely reflecting the Nation's cultural

and linguistic diversity, and increasing opportunities for all

Americans to participate in and benefit from Federal public health

programs, a funding priority will be placed on projects from

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) or Hispanic Serving

Institutions (HSI) in all categories and subcategories in this notice

for which applications from academic institutions are encouraged. An

approved proposal from a HBCU or HSI will receive a 0.5 point favorable

adjustment of the priority score in a 5=point range before funding

decisions are made.

3. Project Review and Funding

Within the limit of funds determined by the Secretary to be

available for the activities described in this announcement, the

Secretary will review applications for funds as competing applications

and may award Federal funding for projects which will, in her judgment,

best promote the purpose of title V of the Social Security Act, with

special emphasis on improving service delivery to women and children

from culturally distinct populations; best address achievement of

Healthy People 2000 objectives related to maternal, infant, child and

adolescent health and service systems for children at risk of chronic

and disabling conditions; and otherwise best promote improvements in

maternal and child health.

4. Criteria for Review

The criteria which follow are used, as pertinent, to review and

evaluate applications for CISS awards announced in this notice. Further

guidance in this regard is supplied in application guidance materials,

which may specify other criteria.

--The quality of the project plan or methodology.

--The need for the research or training.

--The extent to which the project will contribute to the advancement of

maternal and child health and/or improvement of the health of children

with special health care needs;

--The extent to which the project is responsive to policy concerns

applicable to MCH grants and to program objectives, requirements,

priorities and/or review criteria for specific project categories, as

published in program announcements or guidance materials.

--The extent to which the estimated cost to the Government of the

project is reasonable, considering the anticipated results.

--The extent to which the project personnel are well qualified by

training and experience for their roles in the project and the

applicant organization has adequate facilities and personnel.

--The extent to which, insofar as practicable, the proposed activities,

if well executed, are capable of attaining project objectives.

--The strength of the project's plans for evaluation.

--The extent to which the project will be integrated with the

administration of the MCH Block Grant, State primary care plans, public

health, and prevention programs, and other related programs in the

respective State(s).

--The extent to which the application is responsive to the special

concerns and program priorities specified in this notice.

Comments on this notice which members of the public wish to make

are welcome at any time and may be submitted to: Director, MCHB, at the

address listed in the ADDRESSES section. Suggestions will be considered

when priorities are developed for the next solicitation.

5. Grants/Amounts

A total of about $900,000 per year will be available to support a

maximum of 3 projects. The project period will not exceed 4 years.

[[Page 36071]]

6. Eligible Applicants

Applicants eligible to compete are public or nonprofit institutions

of higher learning and public or nonprofit private agencies and

organizations engaged in research or in maternal and child health or

children with special health care needs programs.

7. Public Health System Reporting Requirements

This program is subject to the Public Health System Reporting

Requirements (approved under OMB No. 0937-0195). Under these

requirements, the community-based nongovernmental applicant must

prepare and submit a Public Health System Impact Statement (PHSIS). The

PHSIS is intended to provide information to state and local health

officials to keep them apprised of proposed health services grant

applications submitted by community-based nongovernmental organizations

within their jurisdictions. Community-based nongovernmental applicants

are required to submit the following information to the head of the

appropriate State and local health agencies in the area(s) to be

impacted no later than the Federal application receipt date: (1) A copy

of the face page of the application (PHS-398 (Rev. 5/95); (2) a

summmary of the project PHSIS, not to exceed one page, which provides a

description of the population to be served, a summary of the services

to be provided, and a description of the coordination planned with the

appropriate State and local health agencies.

8. Executive Order 12372

The CISS Federal Set-Aside Program has been determined to be a

program which is not subject to the provisions of Executive Order 12372

concerning intergovernmental review of Federal programs.

The OMB Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number is 93.110.

Dated: July 1, 1996.

Ciro V. Sumaya,

Administrator.

[FR Doc. 96-17317 Filed 7-8-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4160-15-P