[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 39 (Monday, March 1, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10090-10092]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-4869]
[[Page 10089]]
_______________________________________________________________________
Part V
Department of Health and Human Services
_______________________________________________________________________
Office of Public Health and Science
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Family Planning General Training and Technical Assistance Projects;
Notice
Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 39 / Monday, March 1, 1999 /
Notices
[[Page 10090]]
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Office of Public Health and Science
Announcement of Availability of Grants for Family Planning
General Training and Technical Assistance Projects
AGENCY: Office of Family Planning, Office of Population Affairs, OPHS.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Office of Family Planning (OFP) of the Office of
Population Affairs requests applications for grants under the Family
Planning Service Training Program authorized under section 1003 of the
Public Health Service (PHS) Act. Funds are available both to train
family planning personnel and to provide specialized technical
assistance in order to maintain the high level of performance of family
planning service projects funded under Title X of the PHS Act. Training
will be provided under this announcement by general training centers in
the ten Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) regions.
DATES: Applications must be received, or postmarked and received in
time for submission to the review committee, no later than April 30,
1999.
ADDRESSES: Application kits may be requested by fax at (214) 767-3425.
Application kits may also be obtained from and applications must be
submitted to: Office of Grants Management for Family Planning Services,
1301 Young Street, Suite 766, Dallas, Texas 75202.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Program Requirements
Regional Program Consultants (RPCs) or Regional Project Officers
for Family Planning: Region I, Jim Sliker--(617) 565-1060; Region II,
Lucille Katz--(212) 264-2535; Region III, Louis Belmonte--(215) 861-
4641; Cristino Rodriguez--(404) 562-7900; Region V, Janice Ely--(312)
886-3864; Region VI, Evelyn Glass--(214) 767-3088; Region VII,
Elizabeth Curtis--(816) 426-2924; Region VIII, John McCarthy--(303)
844-6163, Extension 399; Region IX, Nadine Simons--(415) 437-7984;
Region X, Janet Wildeboor--(206) 615-2776.
Administrative and Budgetary Requirements
Maudeen Pickett, Grants Management Officer, Office of Grants
Management for Family Planning Services--214/767-3401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title X of the PHS Act, 42 U.S.C. 300, et
seq., authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award
grants for projects to provide training for family planning service
personnel. (Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 93.260). This
notice announces the availability of approximately $3,200,000 in
funding and solicits applications for general training and technical
assistance projects to assist in the establishment and operation of
regional training centers in the ten PHS regions. Grants will be funded
within certain ranges as set out below. Funding of individual grants
within each funding range will be based on the RHA's assessment of such
factors as the training and technical assistance needs within the
region and the cost and availability of personnel for the project.
Competing grant applications are invited for training and technical
assistance projects as follows:
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Region States Funding range
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I....................... CN, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT.. $226,000-$256,000
II...................... NJ, NY, PR, VI.......... 359,000-389,000
III..................... DE, DC, MD, PA, VA, WV.. 373,000-403,000
IV...................... KY, MS, NC, TN, AL, FL, 436,000-466,000
GA, SC.
V....................... IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI.. 377,000-407,000
VI...................... AR, KA, NM, OK, TX...... 352,000-382,000
VII..................... IA, KS, MO, NE.......... 225,000-255,000
VIII.................... CO, MT, ND, SD, UT, WY.. 219,000-249,000
IX...................... AZ, CA, HI, and 6 US 314,000-344,000
Associated Pacific
Jurisdictions.
X....................... AK, ID, OR, WA.......... 219,000-249,000
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Additional information may be obtained from the appropriate
Regional Health Administrator (RHA) at the address below:
Region I: DHHS/PHS Region, I, John F. Kennedy Federal Building,
Government Center, Room 2100, Boston, MA 02203;
Region II: DHHS/PHS Region II, 26 Federal Plaza, Room 3337, New York,
NY 10278;
Region III: DHHS/PHS Region III, 150 S. Independence Mall West,
Philadelphia, PA 19106;
Region IV: DHHS/PHS Region IV, 61 Forsyth Street, Rm. 5B95, Atlanta, GA
30303;
Region V: DHHS/PHS Region V, 105 West Adams Street, 17th Floor,
Chicago, IL 60603;
Region VI: DHHS/PHS Region VI, 1301 Young Street, Suite 1124, Dallas,
TX 75202;
Region VII: DHHS/PHS Region VII, 601 East 12th Street, Room 210, Kansas
City, MO 64016;
Region VIII: DHHS/PHS Region VIII, 1961 Stout Street, Room 498, Denver,
CO 80294;
Region IX: DHHS/PHS Region IX, 50 United Nations Plaza, Room 327, San
Francisco, CA 94102;
Region X: DHHS/PHS Region X, Blanchard Plaza, 2201 Sixth Avenue, M/S
RX-29, Seattle 98121.
Statutory and Regulatory Background
Title X of the PHS Act, enacted Pub. L. 91-572, authorizes grants
for projects to provide family planning services to persons from low-
income families and others. Section 1001 of the Act, as amended,
authorizes grants ``to assist in the establishment of operation and of
voluntary family planning projects which shall offer a broad range of
acceptable and effective family planning methods and services
(including natural family planning methods, infertility services and
services for adolescents).'' Section 1003 of the Act, as amended,
authorizes the Secretary to make grants to entities to provide the
training for personnel to carry out the family planning service
programs.
The regulations set out at 42 CFR part 59, subpart C, govern grants
to provide training for family planning service providers. Prospective
applicants should refer to the regulations in their entirety.
Role and Operation of the Training and Technical Assistance Program
The regulations set out at 42 CFR, Part 59, subpart C, define
``training'' as ``job-specific skill development, the purpose of which
is to promote and improve the delivery of family planning services.''
The purpose of the general training program is to ensure that entities
that
[[Page 10091]]
provide family planning services have the skills, knowledge and
attitudes necessary for the effective delivery of family planning
services.
General training programs funded under this announcement are
focused on the provision of specialized information that is science-
based and that will enhance the ability of family planning providers to
deliver high quality family planning services. Successful applicants
will be responsible for the overall management of the general training
program within the geographic area for which the grant is awarded. The
PHS Project Officer will have final approval for all training plans and
plans for the use of resources. Grantee plans must provide for
flexibility in resource utilization, including training plan design.
The applicant should demonstrate an awareness of electronic
technologies and new training delivery techniques. The grantee will be
required to work closely with other federal, state or local government
entities, family planning providers and other community-based
organizations in achieving program objectives.
Applicants should be familiar with public health initiatives and
programs, such as Healthy People 2000 health promotion and disease
prevention objectives for family planning, as well as Title X program
regulations. In responding to the Request for Applications (RFA), the
applicant must be familiar with the Title X program priorities and key
issues impacting family planning identified below:
Title X Program Priorities
Expansion and enhancement of the quality of clinical
reproductive health services through partnerships with entities that
have related interests and that work with similar priority populations;
Increased emphasis on services to adolescents, including
emphasis on postponement of sexual activity and more accessible
provision of contraceptive counseling and services;
Increased services to hard-to-reach populations by
partnering with community-based organizations and others that have a
stake in the prevention of unintended pregnancy;
Expansion of comprehensiveness of reproduction health
services, including STD and cancer screening and prevention, HIV
prevention, education and counseling, and substance abuse screening and
referral;
Increased services to males, emphasizing shared
responsibility for preventing unintended pregnancy and STD/HIV
infection.
Key Issues
Other key issues are impacting the current and future delivery of
family planning services and will require significant specialized
training efforts. These issues include:
Medicaid waivers and managed care;
Implications of welfare reform and other issues that are
affecting family planning services, such as Temporary Assistance to
Needy Families (TANF) and the Children's Health Insurance Program
(CHIP) as well as other Federal and State initiatives;
Electronic technology;
Research findings;
Legislative mandates, such as counseling teens on
involving families and avoiding coercive sexual relationships.
Specifically, the applicant will have expertise and the ability to
train in areas of information, education and communication; management;
and clinical activities. Within each of these areas, at a minimum, the
grantee will be expected to provide training that includes the
following:
Information, Education and Communication
Assist grantees with designing, implementing and
evaluating information, education and communication strategies;
Train grantee staff on how to utilize research findings
and data reports in project operations;
Train grantee staff in the use of print and mass media to
achieve program goals and objectives.
Management
Improve the management skills of family planning grantee
staff;
Increase the ability of family planning grantee staff to
assess their requirements for the design and utilization of management
information systems;
Increase the ability of family planning grantee staff to
utilize computer and other electronic technologies;
Assist grantee to structure financial systems to monitor,
record and control financial resources;
Assist grantees in implementing income generating
activities and creating cost recovery mechanisms.
Clinical Activities
Provide training to improve the performance of clinical
staff involved in health care delivery;
Convene an annual regional clinical conference for health
care providers where continuing education units are provided.
Successful applicants will also need to demonstrate that they have
the capacity for facilitating the provision of regional technical
assistance. Technical assistance generally consists of specialized or
highly skilled assistance that is usually provided to a single
organization, such as the Regional Office or a grantee or clinic. The
objective of this assistance is to provide projects with the technical
resources needed to address Title X priorities and key issues impacting
family planning. In facilitating the provision of technical assistance,
the PHS Project Officer will work with the successful applicant to
develop a system for providing technical assistance. All forms required
for reporting and tracking technical assistance will be provided by the
Project Officer. All technical assistance must have prior approval of
the PHS Project Officer. The successful applicant will be responsible
for identifying qualified and competent consultants who will be able to
effectively address highly technical and often specialized issues that
are relevant in providing family planning services. The grantee is
responsible for making all necessary arrangements (transportation, per
diem, fees, etc.), with consultants in association with approved
requests for technical assistance. A separate budget for technical
assistance will be developed between the Project Officer and the
successful applicant after the training grant is awarded.
Application Requirements: Applications must be submitted on the
forms supplied (PHS-5161-1, Revised 5/96) (OMB Approval No. 0937-0189)
and in the manner prescribed in the application kits available from the
Office of Grants Management for Family Planning Services at Dallas, TX.
Applicants are required to submit an application signed by an
individual authorized to act for the applicant agency or organization
and to assume for the organization the obligations imposed by the terms
and conditions of the grant award. Applicants are required to submit an
original application and two copies.
Applicants should ensure that they submit their applications in
accordance with the deadline requirements of this announcement. A
legibly dated receipt from a commercial carrier or U.S. Postal Service
will be accepted in lieu of a postmark. Private metered postmarks will
not be accepted as proof of timely mailing. Applications which are
postmarked or delivered to the Grants Management Office later than
April 30, 1999 will be judged late and will not be
[[Page 10092]]
accepted for review. Applicants which do not conform to the
requirements of the program announcement or meet the applicable
requirements of 42 CFR part 59, subpart C, will not be accepted for
review. Applicants will be notified, and applications will be returned.
Any public or private nonprofit organization or agency is eligible
to apply for a grant. It is not required that an entity applying for a
grant be physically located in the region to be served by the proposed
project. Awards will be made only to those organizations or agencies
which demonstrate the capability of providing the proposed services and
which have met all applicable requirements.
A copy of the legislation and regulations governing this program
will be sent to applicants as part of the application kit package.
Applicants should use the legislation, regulations, and information
included in this announcement to guide them in developing their
applications. Applications should be limited to 60 double-spaced pages,
not including appendices, which may provide a roster of consultants,
curriculum vitae, or statements of organizational capabilities.
Application Consideration and Assessment: Eligible competing grant
applications will be reviewed by a multidisciplinary panel of
independent reviewers and assessed according to the following criteria:
1. The extent to which the proposed training and technical
assistance program promises to fulfill the family planning services
delivery needs of the area to be served, as evidenced by the
applicant's ability to address the requirements set out under ``Role
and Operation of the Training and Technical Assistance Program'' above
and the factors set out at 42 CFR 59.206(a)(2)(i)-(iv) (35 Points);
2. The extent to which the application includes evidence of the
capacity of the applicant to make rapid and effective use of the grant
assistance, including evidence of flexibility in the utilization of
resources and training plan design (25 Points);
3. The competence of the project staff, including qualifications
and experience, in relation to the services to be provided, including
the extent to which the applicant demonstrates an effective system for
identifying qualified and competent consultants as necessary to address
highly technical and specialized issues related to the delivery of
family planning services (15 points);
4. The extent to which the application reflects:
(a) The administrative and management capability and competence of
the applicant, including diversity of training experience, as evidenced
by other training grants and/or contracts;
(b) That the project plan adequately provides for the requirements
set forth in 42 CFR 59.205; and
(c) That the proposed training and technical assistance program
will increase the delivery of services to people (particularly low-
income groups, with a high percentage of unmet needs for family
planning services).
Total consideration for the sum of sections 4(a)-(c): (25 Points).
In making grant award decisions, the RHA will fund those projects
which will, in his or her judgment, best promote the purposes of
sections 1001 and 1003 of the Act, within the limits of funds available
for such projects.
Grants will be available for project periods of up to three years.
Grants are funded in annual increments (budget periods). Funding for
all approved budget periods beyond the first year of the grant is
contingent upon satisfactory progress of the project, efficient and
effective use of grant funds provided, and availability of funds.
Review Under Executive Order 12372
Applicants under this announcement are subject to the requirements
of Executive Order 12372, Intergovernmental Review of Department of
Health and Human Services Programs and Activities, as implemented by 45
CFR part 100. As soon as possible, the applicant should discuss the
project with the State Single Point of Contact (SPOC) for each state in
the area to be served. The application kit contains the currently
available listing of the SPOCs which have elected to be informed of the
submission of applications. For those states not represented on the
listing, further inquiries should be made by the applicant regarding
the submission of the relevant SPOC. The SPOC's comment(s) should be
forwarded to the Office of Grants Management for Family Planning
Services, 1301 Young Street, Suite 766, Dallas, Texas 75202. To be
considered, such comments should be received by the Office of Grants
Management for Family Planning Services within 60 days of the closing
date listed under ``Dates'' above.
When final funding decisions have been made, each applicant will be
notified by letter of the outcome. The official document notifying an
applicant that a project applicant has been approved for funding is the
Notice of Grant Award, which specifies to the grantee the amount of
money awarded, the purposes of the grant, and terms and conditions of
the grant award.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 300a-1(a).
Dated: February 18, 1999.
Denese O. Shervington,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population Affairs.
[FR Doc. 99-4869 Filed 2-26-99; 8:45 am]
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