[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 141 (Monday, July 25, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-18052]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: July 25, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Health Resources and Services Administration

 

Program Announcement and Grant Orientation Conferences for the 
Health Careers Opportunity Program

    The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announces 
that applications for fiscal year (FY) 1995 Health Careers Opportunity 
Program (HCOP) grants will be accepted under the authority of Section 
740 of the Public Health Service Act, as amended by Pub. L. 102-408, 
dated October 13, 1992.
    Section 740 authorizes the Secretary to make grants to and enter 
into contracts with schools of allopathic medicine, osteopathic 
medicine, public health, dentistry, veterinary medicine, optometry, 
pharmacy, allied health, chiropractic and podiatric medicine and public 
and nonprofit private schools which offer graduate programs in clinical 
psychology and other public or private nonprofit health or educational 
entities to carry out programs which assist individuals from 
disadvantaged backgrounds to enter and graduate from such schools. The 
assistance authorized by the section may be used to: (1) Identify, 
recruit, and select individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds for 
education and training in a health profession; (2) provide for a period 
prior to the entry of such individuals into the regular course of 
education of such a school, preliminary education designed to assist 
them to complete successfully such regular course of education at such 
a school or referring such individuals to institutions providing such 
preliminary education; (3) facilitate the entry and retention of such 
individuals in health and allied health professions schools; and (4) 
provide counseling and advice on financial aid to assist such 
individuals to complete successfully their education at such schools.
    The Administration's FY 1995 budget request for this program is 
$30.7 million. The statute requires that, of the amount appropriated 
for any fiscal year, 20 percent ($6.1 million) must be obligated for 
stipends to disadvantaged individuals of exceptional financial need who 
are students at schools of allopathic medicine, osteopathic medicine, 
or dentistry. Of the remaining balance, $20.8 million will be used to 
continue support of 107 multi-year projects previously approved and 
funded. It is estimated that $3.7 million will be available to fund 
approximately 22 competing projects averaging $168,000 each.
    In addition, the statute requires that, of the amounts appropriated 
for any fiscal year, 10 percent must be obligated to community-based 
programs and 70 percent must be obligated for grants or contracts to 
institutions of higher education. Not more than 5 percent of such funds 
may be obligated for grants and contracts having the primary purpose of 
informing individuals about the existence and general nature of health 
careers.
    The legislative authority for this program was extended through FY 
1994. This program announcement is subject to the extension of this 
authority and to the appropriation of funds. Applicants are advised 
that this application announcement is a contingency action being taken 
to assure that should the authority be extended and funds become 
available for this purpose, they can be awarded in a timely fashion 
consistent with the needs of the program as well as to provide for an 
even distribution of funds throughout the fiscal year.

Previous Funding Experience

    Previous funding experience information is provided to assist 
potential applicants to make better informed decisions regarding 
submission of an application for this program. In FY 1994, HRSA 
reviewed 200 applications for HCOP Grants. Of those applications, 88 
percent were approved and 12 percent were disapproved. Thirty-five 
projects, or 20 percent of the approved applications, were funded. In 
FY 1993, HRSA reviewed 248 applications for HCOP Grants. Of those 
applications, 86 percent were approved and 14 percent were disapproved. 
Seventy-two projects, or 35 percent of the approved applications, were 
funded.
    To receive support, applicants must meet the requirements of the 
program regulations which are located at 42 CFR part 57, subpart S. The 
period of Federal support will not exceed 3 years.

National Health Objectives for the Year 2000

    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 
Health Careers Opportunity Program is related to the priority area of 
Educational and Community-Based programs. 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, D.C. 20402-9325 (Telephone 202-783-3238).

Education and Service Linkage

    As part of its long-range planning, HRSA will be targeting its 
efforts to strengthening linkages between U.S. Public Health Service 
education programs and programs which provide comprehensive primary 
care services to the underserved.

Smoke-Free Workplace

    The Public Health Service strongly encourages all grant recipients 
to provide a smoke-free workplace and promote the non-use of all 
tobacco products. This is consistent with the PHS mission to protect 
and advance the physical and mental health of the American people.

Review Criteria

    The review of applications will take into consideration the 
following criteria:
    (a) The degree to which the proposed project adequately provides 
for the requirements in the program regulations;
    (b) The number and types of individuals who can be expected to 
benefit from the project;
    (c) The administrative and management ability of the applicant to 
carry out the proposed project in a cost effective manner;
    (d) The adequacy of the staff and faculty;
    (e) The soundness of the budget; and
    (f) The potential of the project to continue without further 
support under this program.
    In addition, the following factor will be applied in determining 
the funding of applications:
    A funding priority is defined as the favorable adjustment of 
aggregate review scores when applications meet specified objective 
criteria.
    The following funding priorities will be used in the distribution 
of grant awards in FY 1995.

Statutory Funding Priority

    Public Law 102-408 requires the Secretary to give priority in 
funding to the following schools:
    1. A school which previously received an HCOP grant and increased 
its first-year enrollment of individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds 
by at least 20 percent over that enrollment in the base year 1987 (for 
which the applicant must supply data) by the end of 3 years from the 
date of the award of the HCOP grant; and
    2. A school which had not previously received an HCOP grant that 
increased its first-year enrollment of individuals from disadvantaged 
backgrounds by at least 20 percent over that enrollment in the base 
year 1987 (for which the applicant must supply data) over any period of 
time (3 consecutive years).

Established Funding Priority

    The following funding priority was established in fiscal year 1990 
after public comment at 55 FR 11264, dated March 27, 1990, and is being 
continued in FY 1995, with the exception that wording related to 
alternative means of documenting enrollment in terms of increases and 
retention rates for disadvantaged students has been deleted. Progress 
in these areas is considered as a part of the merit review process for 
this program and applicants will be informed of relevant benchmarks in 
application materials.
    A funding priority will be given to HCOP applications from health 
professions schools that have a disadvantaged student enrollment of 35 
percent or more. Traditionally, disadvantaged students have been 
disproportionally underrepresented in the health profession schools and 
the health professions. A funding priority will also be given to 
schools of allied health offering baccalaureate or higher level 
programs in physical therapy, physician assisting, respiratory therapy, 
medical technology or occupational therapy that have a disadvantaged 
student enrollment of 35 percent or more among those programs.
    The applicant must indicate on the upper right-hand corner of the 
face page of the application the funding priority for which the 
applicant wishes consideration. However, the final determination of the 
category of funding priority will be based on a staff assessment of the 
contents of the proposal. An applicant may only be given credit for one 
funding priority. Applicants which do not request consideration of a 
funding priority will be reviewed and given full consideration for 
funding in the peer review process.
    In addition, consideration will be given to an equitable geographic 
distribution of projects, and the assurance that a combination of all 
funded projects represents a reasonable proportion of the health 
professions specified in the legislation.

Definitions

    As used in this notice:
    ``Community-based Program'' means a program with organizational 
headquarters located in and which primarily serves: a Metropolitan 
Statistical Area, as designated by the Office of Management and Budget; 
a Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce designated 
nonmetropolitan economic area or a county; or Indian tribe(s) as 
defined in 42 CFR 36.102(c), i.e., an Indian tribe, band, nation, 
rancheria, Pueblo, colony or community, including an Alaska Native 
Village or regional or village corporation.
    ``Health professions schools'' means schools of allopathic 
medicine, dentistry, osteopathic medicine, pharmacy, optometry, 
podiatric medicine, veterinary medicine, public health, chiropractic, 
or graduate programs in clinical psychology and health administration, 
as defined in sections 799 (1)(A) and (1)(B) of the Public Health 
Service Act and as accredited in section 799(1)(E) of the Act.
    ``Individual from a disadvantaged background'' means an individual 
who: (a) Comes from an environment that has inhibited the individual 
from obtaining the knowledge, skills and abilities required to enroll 
in and graduate from a health professions school or from a program 
providing education or training in an allied health profession or; (b) 
comes from a family with an annual income below a level based on low-
income thresholds according to family size, published by the U.S. 
Bureau of the Census, adjusted annually for changes in the Consumer 
Price Index and adjusted by the Secretary for use in all health 
professions programs, 42 CFR 57.1804(b)(2).
    The following income figures determine what constitutes a low-
income family for purposes of these Health Careers Opportunity Program 
grants for fiscal year 1995:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                 Income 
                  Size of parents' family\1\                    level\2\
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1............................................................     $9,700
2............................................................     12,600
3............................................................     15,000
4............................................................     19,200
5............................................................     22,600
6 or more....................................................     25,400
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Includes only dependents listed on Federal income tax forms.         
\2\Adjusted gross income for calendar year 1993, rounded to nearest     
  $100.                                                                 

    The term ``school of allied health'' means a public or nonprofit 
private college, junior college, or university or hospital-based 
educational entity that:
    (a) provides, or can provide, programs of education to enable 
individuals to become allied health professionals or to provide 
additional training for allied health professionals;
    (b) provides training for not less than a total of 20 persons in 
the allied health curricula (except that this subparagraph shall not 
apply to any hospital-based educational entity);
    (c) includes or is affiliated with a teaching hospital; and
    (d) is accredited by a recognized body or bodies approved for such 
purposes by the Secretary of Education or which provides to the 
Secretary satisfactory assurance by such accrediting body or bodies 
that reasonable progress is being made toward accreditation.

Additional Information

    Requests for grant application materials and questions regarding 
grants policy and business management issues should be directed to: Ms. 
Diane Murray, Grants Management Specialist (D18), Bureau of Health 
Professions, Health Resources and Services Administration, Parklawn 
Building, Room 8C-26, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857, 
Telephone: (301) 443-6857, Fax: (301) 443-6343.
    Completed applications should be returned to the Grants Management 
Office at the above address.
    The standard application form PHS 6025-1, HRSA Competing Training 
Grant Application, General Instructions and supplement for this program 
have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under 
the Paperwork Reduction Act. The OMB clearance number is 0915-0060.
    The application deadline date is October 21, 1994. Applications 
will be considered to be ``on time'' if they are either:
    (1) Received on or before the established deadline date, or
    (2) Sent on or before the established deadline and received in time 
for orderly processing. (Applicants should request a legibly dated U.S. 
Postal Service postmark or obtain a legibly dated receipt from a 
commercial carrier or U.S. Postal Service. Private metered postmarks 
shall not be acceptable as proof of timely mailing.)
    Late applications not accepted for processing will be returned to 
the applicant.

Grant Orientation Conferences

    Program information for the Health Careers Opportunity Program will 
also be provided through two program technical assistance conferences. 
Technical assistance will be provided on the program content, policies, 
procedures and application preparation.
    The two conferences are scheduled for September 8-9 and 12-13, 
1994, and will be held in the: Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza, 1750 Rockville 
Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, Telephone: (301) 468-1100, (800) 638-
5963.
    Attendees must make their own lodging arrangements. Expenses 
incurred by the attendees will not be supported by the Federal 
Government.
    Participation in the technical assistance meetings does not assure 
approval and funding of applications submitted for competitive review. 
To obtain specific information regarding the conferences and 
programmatic aspects of this grant program, direct inquiries to: Mario 
A. Manecci, M.P.H., Chief, Health Careers Opportunity Program, Program 
Coordination Branch, Division of Disadvantaged Assistance, Bureau of 
Health Professions, HRSA, Parklawn Building, Room 8A-09, 5600 Fishers 
Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857, Telephone: (301) 443-4493, Fax: (301) 
443-5242.
    This program is listed at 93.822 in the Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance. It is not subject to the provisions of Executive Order 
12372, Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs (as implemented 
through 45 CFR part 100).
    This program is not subject to the Public Health System Reporting 
Requirements.

    Dated: July 6, 1994.
Ciro V. Sumaya,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 94-18052 Filed 7-22-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-15-P