Opportunity Information: Apply for HRSA 17 004
The Information Services to Rural Hospital Flexibility Grantees Program Cooperative Agreement (Technical Assistance Center), funding opportunity number HRSA 17 004, is a discretionary federal grant competition run by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). It falls under the health funding activity category and is associated with CFDA number 93.241. The award mechanism is a cooperative agreement, which typically means the recipient will carry out the work with substantial involvement from HRSA compared with a standard grant. The announcement was created on October 27, 2016, with an original application closing date of January 5, 2017, and HRSA anticipated making a single award (ExpectedAwards: 1). The listed award ceiling is shown as 0 in the source data, which generally indicates the ceiling was not specified in the summary field or was to be defined elsewhere in the full funding announcement.
The core purpose of this opportunity is to strengthen the quality of care and the financial viability of health care in rural communities by providing targeted technical assistance and information services to beneficiaries of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) initiatives. In practical terms, the funded organization would function as a technical assistance center that supports entities tied to the Rural Hospital Flexibility (Flex) Program and related FORHP efforts. The intended beneficiaries explicitly include Flex program grant recipients, Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), small rural hospitals, and rural health networks. The overall emphasis is on helping rural providers and systems perform better operationally, stay financially stable, and improve care delivery in ways that fit rural realities.
The technical assistance described in the opportunity spans several major domains. One focus area is financial and operational performance improvement, which commonly includes helping hospitals and networks understand their cost structure, improve revenue cycle performance, strengthen budgeting and forecasting, identify operational bottlenecks, and apply proven management practices suited to small and rural facilities. Closely tied to that is benchmarking, meaning the program would help participants measure performance using comparable metrics and use those comparisons to set goals and track progress. Benchmarking can cover both financial indicators (such as days cash on hand or operating margin) and clinical or service indicators (such as readmission rates or emergency department throughput), giving rural organizations a clearer picture of how they are doing over time and relative to peers.
Another major component is support for community engagement and population health initiatives. That area generally reflects rural health needs that extend beyond hospital walls, such as coordinating with local public health, primary care, behavioral health, long term care, emergency services, and community organizations. Technical assistance here can involve helping rural stakeholders assess local needs, build partnerships, design interventions that address chronic disease or preventable conditions, and set up practical ways to track population-level outcomes, all while accounting for limited workforce capacity and geographic barriers common in rural regions.
The announcement also highlights rural emergency medical services (EMS) quality improvement. In many rural areas, EMS is a critical front door to the health system and often faces challenges related to distance, staffing, volunteer models, training access, and hospital integration. Support in this area can include improving EMS quality systems, enhancing coordination between EMS and hospitals, standardizing protocols, improving data collection and feedback loops, and strengthening readiness for time-sensitive emergencies, with the broader goal of improving outcomes for rural patients who rely heavily on EMS for urgent access.
Finally, the opportunity includes building capacity for participation in alternative payment models. This reflects the shift away from traditional fee-for-service payment toward models that reward value, quality, and cost management. For rural hospitals and networks, participating in such models can be difficult due to small patient volumes, limited administrative infrastructure, and data/reporting demands. The technical assistance center would help participants understand payment reforms, develop the operational and analytic capacity needed to engage in these models, and implement strategies that support quality and sustainability under value-based purchasing and related approaches.
Eligibility is listed broadly as "Others" with a note to consult the full announcement for details in the "Additional Information on Eligibility" section, implying that specific organizational types or qualifications were defined in the complete funding notice. Overall, the opportunity is designed to fund one organization to serve as a national or multi-state resource that delivers hands-on support, tools, and expertise to rural hospitals and networks, with the end goal of improving performance, care quality, and long-term stability across rural health systems.Apply for HRSA 17 004
- The Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Information Services to Rural Hospital Flexibility Grantees Program Cooperative Agreement (Technical Assistance Center)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.241.
- This funding opportunity was created on Oct 27, 2016.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jan 05, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1) What is the official name of this funding opportunity?
The opportunity is titled Information Services to Rural Hospital Flexibility Grantees Program Cooperative Agreement (Technical Assistance Center).
2) What is the funding opportunity number?
The funding opportunity number is HRSA 17 004.
3) Which federal agency runs this opportunity?
This is a discretionary federal grant competition run by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).
4) What funding activity category does it fall under?
The opportunity is listed under the health funding activity category.
5) What is the CFDA number associated with this program?
The associated CFDA number is 93.241.
6) What type of award is this (grant vs. cooperative agreement)?
The award mechanism is a cooperative agreement.
7) What does “cooperative agreement” mean in this context?
A cooperative agreement typically means the recipient carries out the work with substantial involvement from HRSA, compared with a standard grant where the recipient generally operates with less federal involvement.
8) When was the announcement created?
The announcement was created on October 27, 2016.
9) What was the original application closing date?
The original application closing date was January 5, 2017.
10) How many awards did HRSA expect to make?
HRSA anticipated making a single award (ExpectedAwards: 1).
11) What is the award ceiling?
The award ceiling is shown as 0 in the source summary data, which generally indicates the ceiling was not specified in the summary field or was expected to be defined elsewhere in the full funding announcement.
12) What is the main purpose of this opportunity?
The core purpose is to strengthen the quality of care and the financial viability of health care in rural communities by providing targeted technical assistance and information services to beneficiaries of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) initiatives.
13) What kind of entity would the funded organization function as?
The funded organization would function as a technical assistance center supporting entities tied to the Rural Hospital Flexibility (Flex) Program and related FORHP efforts.
14) Who are the intended beneficiaries of the technical assistance and information services?
The intended beneficiaries explicitly include:
- Flex program grant recipients
- Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs)
- Small rural hospitals
- Rural health networks
15) What are the major technical assistance domains described in the opportunity?
The opportunity describes technical assistance across several major domains, including:
- Financial and operational performance improvement
- Benchmarking
- Community engagement and population health initiatives
- Rural EMS (emergency medical services) quality improvement
- Capacity-building for participation in alternative payment models
16) What does “financial and operational performance improvement” technical assistance typically involve?
It commonly includes helping hospitals and networks understand cost structure, improve revenue cycle performance, strengthen budgeting and forecasting, identify operational bottlenecks, and apply management practices suited to small and rural facilities.
17) What does “benchmarking” mean in this opportunity?
Benchmarking refers to helping participants measure performance using comparable metrics and use those comparisons to set goals and track progress over time and relative to peers.
18) What kinds of measures might be included in benchmarking support?
The summary indicates benchmarking can cover both:
- Financial indicators (for example, days cash on hand or operating margin)
- Clinical or service indicators (for example, readmission rates or emergency department throughput)
19) What is meant by “community engagement and population health initiatives” support?
This refers to rural health work that extends beyond the hospital, such as coordinating with local public health, primary care, behavioral health, long-term care, emergency services, and other community organizations.
20) What kinds of activities could population health technical assistance include (based on the description)?
It can involve helping rural stakeholders assess local needs, build partnerships, design interventions addressing chronic disease or preventable conditions, and set up practical ways to track population-level outcomes, while accounting for limited workforce capacity and geographic barriers.
21) Why is rural EMS quality improvement included as a focus area?
The summary emphasizes that in many rural areas, EMS is a critical front door to the health system and often faces challenges related to distance, staffing, volunteer models, access to training, and hospital integration.
22) What types of EMS quality improvement support are mentioned?
Support can include improving EMS quality systems, enhancing coordination between EMS and hospitals, standardizing protocols, improving data collection and feedback loops, and strengthening readiness for time-sensitive emergencies.
23) What are “alternative payment models,” and why does this opportunity address them?
The summary describes a shift from fee-for-service toward models that reward value, quality, and cost management. The technical assistance center would help rural hospitals and networks build capacity to understand and engage in these payment reforms.
24) What challenges for rural providers are noted regarding alternative payment model participation?
The summary notes challenges such as small patient volumes, limited administrative infrastructure, and data/reporting demands.
25) What kind of help would the technical assistance center provide related to alternative payment models?
The center would help participants understand payment reforms, develop the operational and analytic capacity needed to engage in these models, and implement strategies supporting quality and sustainability under value-based purchasing and related approaches.
26) Who is eligible to apply (based on the provided summary)?
Eligibility is listed broadly as "Others", with a note to consult the full announcement for details in the "Additional Information on Eligibility" section.
27) Does the summary specify exact organizational eligibility requirements?
No. The summary indicates that specific organizational types or qualifications were defined in the complete funding notice, not in the brief eligibility line.
28) What is the overall intended impact of funding one technical assistance center?
The overall intent is to fund one organization that serves as a national or multi-state resource delivering hands-on support, tools, and expertise to rural hospitals and networks, with the end goal of improving performance, care quality, and long-term stability across rural health systems.
29) Is the opportunity tied to any specific HRSA/FORHP initiative?
Yes. The summary ties the work to beneficiaries of Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) initiatives, including entities connected to the Rural Hospital Flexibility (Flex) Program.
30) What kinds of organizations would receive support from the funded technical assistance center?
Based on the summary, the support is designed for organizations and providers associated with FORHP and Flex efforts, including Flex grantees, Critical Access Hospitals, small rural hospitals, and rural health networks.
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