[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 212 (Monday, November 2, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69334-69335]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-24150]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES


Awards Unsolicited Proposal; Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance (CFDA) Number: 93.137 and 93.129

AGENCY: Office of Minority Health (OMH) and Office of the Assistant 
Secretary for Health, Department of Health and Human Services.

ACTION: Notice of award of an unsolicited request for funding to be 
awarded as a single project through two cooperative agreement awards to 
the American Heart Association (AHA), Dallas, Texas.

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SUMMARY: OMH announces the award of a single-source award in response 
to an unsolicited proposal from the American Heart Association, Dallas, 
Texas. The proposal submitted was not solicited either formally or 
informally by any federal government official. The award is comprised 
of two cooperative agreements administered by OMH in collaboration with 
HRSA.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Rodriguez at 
[email protected] or by telephone at 240-453-8208.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Recipient: American Heart Association, Dallas, Texas.
    Purpose of the Award: The Office of Minority Health (OMH) will 
award a cooperative agreement to AHA to improve COVID-related health 
outcomes for highly impacted racial and ethnic minorities by addressing 
hypertension as a key risk factor. In addition, OMH will award a 
cooperative agreement to AHA, on behalf of the Health Resources and 
Services Administration (HRSA), to provide technical assistance to 
HRSA-funded health centers to increase provider and clinician 
engagement in implementing evidence-based practices (e.g., advanced 
self-measured blood pressure technology) to increase the number of 
adult patients with controlled hypertension and reduce the potential 
risk of COVID-related health outcomes. The two cooperative agreements 
will support a single national project that is expected to identify 
promising approaches/best practices that combine new blood pressure 
measurement technology, lifestyle/behavioral modifications and locally 
targeted media campaigns to address uncontrolled, including 
undiagnosed, high blood pressure in racial and ethnic minority, 
American Indian/Alaska Native and other vulnerable populations, given 
the association of hypertension with worse COVID-19 health outcomes.
    The project is expected to support training and technical 
assistance to support HRSA-funded health centers' implementation of 
evidence-based interventions that combine remote blood pressure 
monitoring technology to reduce disparities in uncontrolled and 
undiagnosed high blood pressure among medically underserved communities

[[Page 69335]]

and populations, with a focus on racial and ethnic minorities. This 
award will provide training and technical assistance to approximately 
350 HRSA-funded health centers serving approximately one million 
patients with the greatest opportunities to improve blood pressure 
control. Through a separate funding opportunity, HRSA anticipates 
providing funding to these 350 health centers to support their 
participation in the National Hypertension Control Initiative (HTN 
Initiative).
    Amount of Awards: Approximately $32M ($17.5M OMH, $14.5M HRSA) for 
a project period of up to 3 years. The possible project total, 
including approximately $60M from HRSA to health centers, is 
approximately $92M ($17.5M OMH and $74.5M HRSA) and is subject to 
availability of funding and satisfactory performance.
    Project Period: November 17, 2020-November 16, 2023.
    This three-year HTN Initiative aligns with: (1) HHS' Strategic Plan 
goal to protect the health of Americans where they live, learn, work, 
and play (https://www.hhs.gov/about/strategic-plan/overview/index.html#overview); (2) the HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial and 
Ethnic Health Disparities goal of advancing the health, safety and 
well-being of the American People (https://www.minorityhealth.hhs.gov/npa/files/Plans/HHS/HHS_Plan_complete.pdf); (3) the U.S. Surgeon 
General's Call to Action on Hypertension Control (https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2020/10/07/surgeon-general-releases-call-to-action-on-hypertension-control.html); (4) OMH's overarching goal of supporting 
the sustainability and dissemination of health equity promoting 
policies, programs and practices and OMH's identification of 
hypertension as a clinical focus area (https://www.minorityhealth.hhs.gov/omh/browse.aspx?lvl=1&lvlid=1); and (5) 
HRSA's strategic goal to achieve health equity and enhance population 
health (https://www.hrsa.gov/about/strategic-plan/index.html) and 
HRSA's annual collection of data on health center patients with 
controlled hypertension (Uniform Data System (UDS) Health Outcomes and 
Disparities Table, https://bphc.hrsa.gov/sites/default/files/bphc/datareporting/pdf/2020UDSTables.pdf).
    The primary purpose of the HTN Initiative is to establish a 
nationwide approach for improving health outcomes related to COVID-19 
by addressing hypertension as a key risk factor for racial and ethnic 
minorities, American Indians/Alaska Natives and other vulnerable 
populations. This initiative will build partnerships and develop 
relationships within a national scope to support work with HRSA-funded 
health centers to:
     Improve health outcomes for racial and ethnic minority, 
American Indian/Alaska Native and other vulnerable populations with 
hypertension, including individuals with undiagnosed hypertension and 
pregnant and postpartum women;
     Increase the use of advanced self-measured blood pressure 
technology;
     Increase awareness of health programs and community 
services for the target population; and
     Increase patient and provider education and training.
    OMH performed an objective review of the unsolicited proposal from 
the American Heart Association with subject matter assistance from 
HRSA's Bureau of Primary Health Care and external and internal proposal 
assessments. Based on this review, OMH determined that the proposal has 
merit. OMH funding will support the Community Outreach and Integration, 
Patient and Public Education, and Evaluation components of the project. 
HRSA funding will support the Healthcare Organizations and Healthcare 
Provider Training, and the Patient and Public Education components of 
the project.
    As the nation's largest voluntary health organization and author of 
the national guidelines for cardiovascular risk factor prevention, AHA 
is uniquely positioned to implement this national initiative to address 
the acute need to improve COVID-related health outcomes for highly 
impacted racial and ethnic minorities by addressing hypertension as a 
key risk factor. Reducing this preventable and most prominent threat to 
our nation's health through clinical guideline and evidence-based 
intervention is a top organizational priority for AHA, particularly 
among underserved communities of color that experience higher 
prevalence of this critical risk factor for the leading causes of death 
and chronic diseases, including COVID-19.
    This award is being made non-competitively because there is no 
current, pending, or planned funding opportunity announcement under 
which this proposal could compete.
    As the Administration continues its response to the COVID-19 
pandemic, addressing the related health disparities among racial and 
ethnic minority and American Indian/Alaska Native populations is an 
urgent challenge for HHS. Not awarding the HTN Initiative as a single 
source award will delay HHS' capacity to expand health center access to 
public health education, outreach, engagement and treatment services 
tailored to improve COVID-19 outcomes by addressing hypertension as a 
key risk factor for racial and ethnic minority and American Indian/
Alaska Native populations. Delays in the award could contribute to 
higher rates of ``excess deaths'' as defined by the CDC among the 
populations of focus for the HTN Initiative (https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/covid19/excess_deaths.htm).

    Legislative Authority: Funding for OMH's cooperative agreement 
award is authorized under 42 U.S.C. 300u-6, (Section 1707 of the 
Public Health Service Act). Funding for HRSA's cooperative agreement 
award, which also will be administered by OMH under an interagency 
agreement, is authorized under Section 330(l) of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254b(l)).

    Dated: October 27, 2020.
Felicia Collins,
RADM, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health.
[FR Doc. 2020-24150 Filed 10-30-20; 8:45 am]
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