Overview
Additional funding was awarded to fiscal year (FY) 2020 Primary Care Association (PCA) award recipients to enhance training and technical assistance (T/TA) to support health centers in their state or region on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) prevention, preparedness, and/or response, including strengthening health center operations and capacity to ensure access to comprehensive primary care services.
In addition to the PCA base award, all PCAs received additional one-time COVID-19 funding equivalent to 10 percent of their PCA award or $75,000, whichever is higher. HRSA will provide the individual COVID-19 funding amount for each PCA in a separate communication.1
Use of Funds
This COVID-19 funding may support a wide range of activities that align with the funding purpose, as needs evolve, but may not be used for costs incurred before the award start date (July 1, 2020). Appendix A lists example activities that may support health centers with addressing COVID-19.
Required Supporting Documents
As stated on your notice of award, you will document your COVID-19-related T/TA activities in your revised Project Work Plan, to be submitted within 60 days of the award start date through the Project Work Plan (PWP) Module. Under Goal F: Supplemental Funding Activities and the new objective titled COVID-19 Supplemental Funding, list the additional T/TA activities that will support health centers with addressing COVID-19.
You will report progress through your next non-competing continuation progress report and other routine monitoring processes.
Contacts
- For questions about funding uses or Project Work Plan updates, contact Nathalia Drew at ndrew1@hrsa.gov.
- For questions about federal funding requirements, contact the grants management specialist referenced on your Notice of Award.
Appendix A: Example Activities
This is a list of example PCA activities that may support health centers with COVID-19 prevention, preparedness, and/or response, including strengthening health center operations and capacity to ensure access to comprehensive primary care services. This list is not exhaustive.
Staffing
- Support health centers in hiring and/or contracting new providers to address increased demand due to COVID-19 through activities such as establishing COVID-19 job boards and providing TA on provider recruitment.
Operations
- Coordinate a peer-group of health center personnel to discuss best practices for supporting increased patient triage, testing (including drive- or walk-up testing), laboratory services, and visits.
- Build coalitions and strengthen partnerships among health centers and local and state public health departments, and clinical and community-based organizations to share information on and coordinate response to COVID-19.
- Disseminate best practices and key information related to COVID-19 response in the state or region.
- Support/assist health centers in the state or region to obtain group purchasing rates to procure personal protective equipment, supplies, and/or items related to COVID-19 testing (e.g., COVID-19 tests, specimen handling and collection, storage, and processing equipment).
- Support health centers with enhancing telehealth infrastructure, in collaboration with Health Center Controlled Networks, as appropriate, to expand virtual care and increase capacity to assess a growing number of patients experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.
- Support health centers with financial analysis and forecasting to accommodate changing operations, and strategic planning to ensure a return to full capacity of comprehensive primary care services following an emergency.
Health Education
- Promote educational materials on precautions to prevent, contain, or mitigate COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses for use in the state or region.
- Promote adding to the Health Center Resource Clearinghouse unique COVID-19 resources created in the state or region that could have national benefit.
Emergency Preparedness
- Provide T/TA on ensuring proper emergency management functions are in place.
- Develop emergency preparedness learning teams with health centers and state and local health departments.
- Provide T/TA on creating new and enhancing existing emergency preparedness and response workflows to embed CDC guidelines and recommendations.
- Assess the current level of emergency preparedness at health centers, including their ability to address surge capacity and potential provider and other health center staff absenteeism. Provide T/TA on updating health center emergency operation plans in identified high-need areas.
- Share resources to support health centers with updating health center policies (e.g., providing hazard pay), procedures (e.g., sending emergency alerts), and emergency management plans.
1 HRSA will send funding amount emails to the individuals registered as project director, business official, and authorizing official in the U30 grant folder in the HRSA Electronic Handbooks (EHBs).