NCUIH Newsletter | August 12, 2019
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NCUIH Youth Council Hosts Native Youth Virtual Convening and Announces Launch of Indigi-Wellness Champion Campaign
On Tuesday, August 6th the National Council of Urban Indian Health’s (NCUIH) National Youth Advisory Council partnered with United National Indian Tribal Youth, Inc. (UNITY) to host the 1st National Native Youth Virtual Convening. The Native Youth Convening created a space for American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) youth throughout Indian County to learn about the NCUIH Youth Council’s upcoming national social media Indigi-Wellness Champion Campaign kicking off on September 10, 2019. The convening provided an overview on how to become an Indigi-Wellness Champion through participation in the campaign. NCUIH’s Youth Council and participants also shared top problems that youth face within each of their respected communities and top barriers that make it difficult for Native youth to get the help they need throughout Indian country.
NCUIH Inaugural Youth Council members’ Faith Bowman (Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Nation), Shoshanna Johnson (Absentee Shawnee, Sac & Fox Nation), and Adon Vazquez (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians) and 2019 Youth Council Member Benjamin Sandecki (Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma) led the youth convening with participants from across the nation to also teach them on importance of resiliency approaches. UNITY’s Wellness Warrior Program Manager LorenAshley (Oklevueha Band of Yamassee in Florida) provided wellness strategies and a resiliency tools session during the second half of the youth convening.
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ICWA Held Constitutional in Big Win for Indian Country
On Friday, August 9, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit found the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) constitutional, overturning a decision from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. Last October, a U.S. district judge declared ICWA unconstitutional under the Fifth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, arguing that it creates a separate set of practices for a racial group. The Brackeen v. Bernhardt case was appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, where NCUIH joined nearly 400 Tribes and Indian organizations in filing an amicus curiae brief in support of ICWA’s constitutionality.
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New Legislation Introduced: Health Care Access for Urban Native Veterans Act (H.R. 4153)
Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Senator Tom Udall (D-NM), vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, introduced the Health Care Access for Urban Native Veterans Act (H.R. 4153), a bill to improve health care access for Native American Veterans by providing Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) coverage for care that Native American Veterans receive at Urban Indian health centers. This legislation would include “Urban Indian organizations” in the statute requiring the VA to reimburse Indian Health Service (IHS) and Tribal health facilities for services they provide to native veterans. The bill currently has bipartisan support.
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Trump Signs Budget Deal
On August 2nd, President Trump signed a two-year, $2.7 trillion budget agreement that wards off $126 billion in automatic spending cuts and suspends the debt ceiling through July 2021, according to a senior administration official. The deal does not fund federal agencies, with a government shutdown still possible at the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year. The House and Senate must still pass a dozen fiscal 2020 funding bills, which Trump must also sign. The bipartisan budget package, H.R. 3877 (116), increases military and non-military spending by $320 billion above the budget caps that would have taken effect if Congress failed to stop sequestration. Politico reports that the agreement also includes about $77 billion in offsets, which are expected to kick in near the end of a decade and are unlikely to take effect.
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Utah Legislature’s Health Care Plan Fails, Leading to Renewed Calls for Full Medicaid Expansion
Utah voters approved a full expansion of Medicaid in 2018. Utah lawmakers, citing the potential for runaway cost, repealed the initiative and adopted their own, more restrictive plan, SB96, which seeks a series of waivers from the federal government to adopt spending and enrollment caps and impose work requirements on Medicaid beneficiaries. Gov. Gary Herbert and legislative leaders have confirmed that they have been told by the Trump administration that the next phase of Utah’s partial expansion — seeking enhanced federal funding for a smaller population of patients than the Affordable Care Act mandates — would be rejected. Fallback provisions in SB96 will automatically trigger a full expansion of Medicaid beginning in January if the state’s waiver requests are denied. Herbert released a statement indicating that the state intends to continue with its waiver request, despite the preemptive rejection of enhanced federal funding, in order to receive feedback from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on the restrictive aspects of Utah’s plans.
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Reminder: Opioid Grant Program Tribal Consultation and Urban Confer Comment Submission Extended to September 3
A letter notifying Urban Indian Organization leaders that the comment submission deadline for the Opioid Grant Program Urban Confer has been extended until Tuesday, September 3, 2019, and also provides information about a Virtual/In-Person Opioid Grant Program Information Session on July 31, 2019, in conjunction with the 16th Annual Direct Service Tribes National meeting is now posted on the IHS Web site and is available at the link below.
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Call for UIOs to Participate in Health IT Modernization Survey
IHS and HHS are well underway on their Health IT modernization project, and as part of that work, they would like feedback from across Indian Country, including Urban sites on the current state of Health IT across the Indian Health Service (IHS). Currently, the HIT Modernization Project is focused on developing a recommended process that will assist the IHS as they work to modernize the HIT systems, including the Electronic Health Record (EHR) utilized by the IHS – the Resource Patient Management System (RPMS). With your voice, we can secure a stronger healthcare future for American Indian and Alaska Native communities!
The online questionnaire will help identify clinical, administrative, infrastructure gaps in the HIT system and identify what changes are required to meet the needs of healthcare facilities. The questionnaire will ask participants about the changes and improvements to RPMS they would most like to see. Please note, questions for the survey were developed from input received by users of RPMS. We ask for your timely participation in the data call to ensure that the perspective of your patients and their urban Indian health program is included, whether or not your health system utilizes RPMS regularly.
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CMS Advances MyHealthEData with New Pilot to Support Clinicians
CMS has announced a new pilot program for clinicians called “Data at the Point of Care” (DPC). DPC is based on an industry-standard application programming interface (API), and is part of the MyHealthEData Administration-wide initiative led by the White House Office of American Innovation. MyHealthEData is designed to empower patients by giving them access to their medical information so they can make better medical decisions. Additionally, the DPC pilot program will leverage Medicare’s Blue Button data to provide clinicians with access to claims data. The claims data will fill in information gaps for clinicians, giving them a more structured and complete patient history with information like previous diagnoses, past procedures, and medication lists. Blue Button 2.0 has provided better access to this data for patients but now CMS is going a step further and helping to connect clinicians to their patients’ information. Clinicians will be able to access the DPC pilot data directly within their workflow, without needing to log into another application. This in turn will reduce burden in the exam room and give clinicians more time to deliver high quality care for their patients. Clinicians participating in the DPC pilot program will be allowed to request a Medicare beneficiary’s claims data from CMS to get a full snapshot of their care including from other healthcare providers the beneficiary has seen for care. This will be done through a developer-friendly, industry-standard API using Health Level 7’s Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resource (FHIR®) standard, one of the most popular protocols for joining disparate systems together to promote interoperability and seamlessly share health information.
Clinicians who are interested in participating in the DPC pilot program can sign up by visiting: https://dpc.cms.gov. Beneficiaries who wish to opt out of data sharing can do so by calling 1-800-Medicare.
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CMS Advances MyHealthEData with New Pilot to Support Clinicians
CMS has announced a new pilot program for clinicians called “Data at the Point of Care” (DPC). DPC is based on an industry-standard application programming interface (API), and is part of the MyHealthEData Administration-wide initiative led by the White House Office of American Innovation. MyHealthEData is designed to empower patients by giving them access to their medical information so they can make better medical decisions. Additionally, the DPC pilot program will leverage Medicare’s Blue Button data to provide clinicians with access to claims data. The claims data will fill in information gaps for clinicians, giving them a more structured and complete patient history with information like previous diagnoses, past procedures, and medication lists. Blue Button 2.0 has provided better access to this data for patients but now CMS is going a step further and helping to connect clinicians to their patients’ information. Clinicians will be able to access the DPC pilot data directly within their workflow, without needing to log into another application. This in turn will reduce burden in the exam room and give clinicians more time to deliver high quality care for their patients. Clinicians participating in the DPC pilot program will be allowed to request a Medicare beneficiary’s claims data from CMS to get a full snapshot of their care including from other healthcare providers the beneficiary has seen for care. This will be done through a developer-friendly, industry-standard API using Health Level 7’s Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resource (FHIR®) standard, one of the most popular protocols for joining disparate systems together to promote interoperability and seamlessly share health information.
Clinicians who are interested in participating in the DPC pilot program can sign up by visiting: https://dpc.cms.gov. Beneficiaries who wish to opt out of data sharing can do so by calling 1-800-Medicare.
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Administration Announces Plans to Import Prescription Drugs
On July 31st, the Trump Administration announced that it would take actions that could allow states and companies to import cheaper drugs from Canada and other countries. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said that it would begin a rulemaking process under existing FDA authority that would authorize pilot projects to import certain drugs as long as they are manufactured safely and “consistent with FDA approval.” In addition, FDA will provide manufacturers the opportunity to offer a lower price for imported versions of drugs they sell overseas. HHS indicated that this might include medications like insulin for diabetes and drugs for rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular disorders, and cancer.
Administrator Azar described the new policy as a "mindshift" from traditionally deadset FDA opposition to imports. "What we're saying today is, 'We're open, there is a pathway,'" Azar said, as long as importers can convince FDA they have a workable plan that protects safety and lowers prices.
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Upcoming Events Highlights
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CMS Outreach and Education Event (August 14-15, 2019 in Norwich, CT)
In partnership with Indian Health Service, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is committed to helping the Indian Health Service (IHS), Tribal Health Programs, and Urban Indian Programs to maximize their ability to access third party resources. To meet this objective, CMS, in partnership with the States, the Veterans Administration, the Social Security Administration, and the IHS, provides training to patient benefits advocates on the programs and benefits available through Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and the Health Insurance Marketplace.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Regions I and II are jointly sponsoring the 2019 CMS Outreach & Education Event. The event will be held in Norwich, CT on Wednesday, August 14th and Thursday, August 15th, 2019. View the agenda.
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Webinar: CMS - From Coverage to Care: How to Successfully Navigate Health Coverage (August 13)
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of Minority Health (CMS-OMH) invite you to join the webinar, From Coverage to Care: How to Successfully Navigate Health Coverage on August 13th at 2pm EDT. This event is an opportunity to learn more about the Coverage to Care (C2C) initiative and the resources available to help patients and caregivers understand their health coverage and connect to primary care, preventive, and behavioral health services so they can live long, healthy lives! To learn more or download C2C resources, please visit go.cms.gov/c2c or email us at coveragetocare@cms.hhs.gov.
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Virtual Training: Project ECHO | Grand Rounds (August 13 and 16, 2019)
Opioid Use Disorder
- August 13, 2019 from 12:00 - 1:00pm MT
- The BHA Grand Round will be a 1 hour lecture on Opioid Use Disorder (OUD), presented by Snehal Bhatt, MD. This lecture will review criteria for OUD, the role of primary care teams in treatment of patients with OUD and harm reduction for patients with OUD.
- To register, contact bhaECHO@salud.unm.edu and include your name, credentials, health center/organization, city and state.
Introduction to Depression Management (BHA)
- August 16, 2019 from 12:00 - 1:00pm MT
- To register, contact bhaECHO@salud.unm.edu and include your name, credentials, health center/organization, city and state.
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CDC/ATSDR Tribal Advisory Committee (TAC) Meeting and 19th Biannual Tribal Consultation Session (August 13 - 14, 2019 in Cherokee, NC)
The Summer 2019 CDC/ATSDR TAC Meeting and 19th Biannual Tribal Consultation Session will provide opportunities for tribal leaders to speak about the public health issues affecting their tribal nation. These meetings will include, but are not limited to, discussions about securing sustainable funding to Indian Country, ensuring a tribal voice in CDC policy and programs, and current CDC priorities. Tribal nations also will have an opportunity to present formal testimony about tribal public health issues. It will take place August 13 - 14, 2019 at Harrah’s Cherokee, 777 Casino Dr, Cherokee, NC, 28719.
Contact: TribalSupport@cdc.gov
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2019 Indian Health Service - National Clinical & Community-Based Services Conference (August 24-30, 2019 in Tigard, OR)
The Indian Health Service (IHS) is hosting the Clinical and Community-Based Services Conference to convene and hear from nationally recognized speakers, health care providers, Tribal leaders, and health care officials committed to addressing emergent clinical and community health topics in Indian Country. The focus topics include, but are not limited to: opioid prevention, HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C prevention, STD prevention, tobacco prevention, cancer prevention, and Youth Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Training. It takes place August 24-30, 2019 in Tigard, Oregon.
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Administration for Children and Families (ACF) - Annual Tribal Consultation Meeting (September 16, 2019 in Temecula, CA)
The ACF will host its Annual Tribal Consultation Meeting on September 16, 2019, in Temecula, California from 9am -5pm PDT. The session will take place at the Pechanga Resort and Casino. More information about the meeting is be posted here: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ana/2019-acf-tribal-consultation. All attendees must register for this consultation through this site.
Contact: ANA help desk at 1-877-922-9262 or ANACommissioner@acf.hhs.gov.
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Technical Assistance & Research Highlights
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Program Highlight: Missoula’s Urban Indian Organization (UIO)’s Executive Director D'Shane Barnett Featured on Mountain-Pacific’s Healthy Living for Life Program
Missoula Urban Indian Health Center Executive Director D'Shane Barnett was recently featured on Mountain-Pacific’s Healthy Living for Life program on Native American health care, to discuss the strengths and challenges faced by urban Indian organizations (UIOs). In this episode, you will hear about some of the challenges urban Indian organizations face and ways how UIOs overcome these challenges to provide quality health care for the communities they serve.
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Program Highlight: American Indian Health and Family Services’ Urban Indian Organization Zero Suicide Program Screening Event
The American Indian Health and Family Services’ Zero Suicide Program, funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, completed its 6th screening event of the year at the Veteran Affairs Ann Arbor Mental Health Summit in Dexter, Michigan. The AIHFS, an IHS-funded urban Indian organization located in Detroit, provided 28 screenings for veterans and veteran providers attending the event. So far this year, the Zero Suicide Program has screened nearly 150 community members for suicide risk and continues to work toward improving suicide prevention and intervention. Continue the good work AIHFS! For more information on how to talk about suicide, warning signs and risk factors, and resources for providers and patients, please visit the IHS Suicide Prevention and Care Program website.
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Resource: Older Indians Newsletter - Summer 2019
The Older Indians Summer 2019 Newsletter is now available. Please feel free to share within your organization.
If you have any questions or would like to submit a tribe of the quarter for the Fall 2019 edition, please contact Melissa Szasz at Melissa.Szasz@teyaservices.com.
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Archived Webinar Available: Addressing the Intersection of Serious Mental Illness and Suicide in Healthcare
The Zero Suicide webinar titled Addressing the Intersection of Serious Mental Illness (SMI) and Suicide in Healthcare is now available. This webinar provides an overview of the relationship between SMI and suicide, highlight some of the resources available to support health and behavioral healthcare organizations in their care for individuals with serious mental illness, as well as how to assist their loved ones.
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New Job Opening: Urban Indian Center of Salt Lake - Red Mesa Counseling Program Director
The Program Director is responsible for all administrative functions necessary to accomplish the program’s objectives and goals as they correspond to the Urban Indian Center of Salt Lake’s (UICSL) mission statement: “To Preserve the Heritage, Enhance the Well-Being, and Strengthen the Future of the People.” The Program Director is directly involved in program development and maintenance, including but not limited to the facilitation of collaborative community partnerships, writing applications for and administering third-party funding contracts/awards, long-term program and agency planning, ensuring the best possible care for program clients, and ensuring inter-program cooperation and integrative services.
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Apply: Human Trafficking Leadership Academy
Human Trafficking Leadership Academy applications and nominations are open until August 16th. This class will be comprised of six survivors of human trafficking and five leaders dedicated to ending trafficking and ally professionals who serve at-risk youth in Indigenous populations. The team will work together to address the question: “How can culture be a protective factor in preventing trafficking among Native youth?”. All fellows will receive necessary expenses and are eligible for a monthly stipend during the 4-6 month program. More information on applications and nominations are at the Office of Trafficking in Persons website.
Deadline: August 16, 2019
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Washington University in St. Louis, Brown School - Certificate in Evidence-Based Assessment & Treatment of Anxiety in Adults
The Post-Master’s Certificate in Evidence-Based Assessment & Treatment of Anxiety in Adults will prepare professionals with evidence-based competencies in engaging, assessing and intervening with adults presenting with anxiety. The program’s case-based approach provides tools for how to conceptualize and address the distress of clients presenting with four of the most common anxiety-related diagnoses. Participants will learn to apply Exposure-Based Treatment strategies, Exposure Response Prevention Therapy, and Acceptance & Commitment Therapy to alleviate client distress.
Deadline: August 16, 2019
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New Funding: UIHI 2019-2020 Community Grants Program Request for Applications
The Urban Indian Health Institute has released its applications for the Community Grants Program 2019-2020: An Indigenous Approach to Cancer (such as Colorectal, Cervical, and Breast) Prevention, Management, and Survivorship. The Request for Applications (RFA) encourages the use of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) traditional, cultural, and regional knowledge in developing, implementing, and/or supporting cancer education, prevention, management, and survivorship initiatives among urban Indian communities.
Eligibility is for Urban Indian Health Programs, National Urban Indian Family Coalition members, or Urban Indian programs and/or organizations receiving MSPI/DVPI funding. Four grants of $10,000 (distributed over a 12-month period) will be awarded for the time period of September 30, 2019 to September 29, 2020. Awardees will be announced September 13th, 2019.
Deadline: August 30, 2019
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New Funding: AmeriCorps Senior Corps Volunteer Grants
The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) seeks to increase the impact of national service in one or more counties across the country through its FY2020 Senior RSVP grant competition. CNCS intends to fund Senior Corps RSVP grants that support volunteers age 55 years and older in activities that serve community needs and respond to the National Performance Measures in the following focus areas: disaster; education; economic opportunity; environment; healthy futures; and veterans and military families. Expected awards will be in the range of $40,000 to $470,000. Applicants are encouraged to send a Notice of Intent to Apply by 5:00 PM Eastern Time on Friday, August 30, 2019 via Survey Monkey.
Notice of Intent: August 30, 2019
Deadline for Applications: September 25, 2019
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Funding: HUD for Specialized Housing and Services for Victims of Human Trafficking
Through the FY 2019 Specialized Housing and Services for Victims of Human Trafficking solicitation, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Special Needs Assistance Programs, in conjunction with OVC, seeks to address the housing and service needs of victims of human trafficking.
This solicitation has two distinct components and applicants may apply under one or both of the following:
Technical Assistance Applications
- The successful applicant will provide technical assistance to the possible 20 successful projects selected for under the Human Trafficking Program. HUD expects to make one award, with an estimated total amount awarded of up to $1 million.
- Apply for the Technical Assistance component by August 30, 2019.
Human Trafficking Program Applications
- Successful applicants will implement and provide housing and trauma-informed, victim-centered services to victims of human trafficking. HUD expects to make up to 20 awards, with an estimated total amount awarded of up to $13.5 million.
- Apply for the Human Trafficking Program component by October 30, 2019.
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Call for Interest Letters on Opioid Response Initiatives from Pew Charitable Trusts
The Pew Charitable Trusts is pleased to announce the Community Opioid Response and Evaluation (CORE) project, an effort to help communities on the front lines of the opioid crisis conduct evaluations of existing programs. With support from and in collaboration with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the CORE awards will provide funding and assistance for up to six community-based initiatives, composed of a lead applicant organization and their selected evaluation partner, to conduct evaluations of established programs. Interested organizations are invited to learn more and apply by August 30, 2019.
Deadline: August 30, 2019
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IHS Call for Project Spotlights: National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month (September)
September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. Please provide a brief description of their project's activities for suicide prevention to spotlight during the month of September and during National Suicide Prevention Awareness Week, September 8 to 14, 2019. Project Spotlights will be hosted on both the IHS.gov/suicideprevention and at the IHS Division of Behavioral Health Facebook page. If you have any questions or comments, please contact pamela.endofhorn@ihs.gov. Complete this form to provide information to be spotlighted.
Deadline: August 30, 2019 by 5pm EST
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New Funding: American Indian/Alaska Native Tribes and Urban Indian Communities Aimed at Ending the HIV Epidemic in Indian Country
On August 6th, the Indian Health Service (IHS) Office of Public Health Support, Division of Epidemiology and Disease Prevention (DEDP), in partnership with the IHS Office of Clinical and Preventive Services (OCPS) National Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) & Viral Hepatitis C (HCV) Program and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Minority HIV/AIDS Fund (MHAF) announced that it is accepting applications for competitive supplemental funds to enhance activities in the Epidemiology Program for American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) Tribes and Urban Indian communities. The purpose of this IHS competitive supplement is to support communities in reducing new HIV infections and relevant comorbidities, specifically STI and HCV infections, improve HIV-, STI- and HCV-related health outcomes, and to reduce HIV-, STI- and HCV-related health disparities among AI/AN people.
Funding will be through cooperative agreement, with total funding identified for FY 2019 at $500,000. Individual award amounts will be up to $100,000 total costs per year, subject to the availability of appropriations and budgetary priorities of the Agency. For complete background information and application requirements, please see the Federal Register Notice here.
Deadline: September 5, 2019
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