DHS Offers Provider Capacity Grants for Rural & Underserved Communities

Posted on December 15, 2022 by Mark Schulz

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) is conducting a second round of grant funding for HCBS providers supporting rural and underserved communities.

DHS is offering Provider Capacity Grants to organizations serving or looking to serve home and community-based services (HCBS) to rural and underserved communities. The program is intended to increase the number of HCBS providers throughout Minnesota and the number of HCBS providers providing culturally specific services.

Grants can go to new organizations looking to become an HCBS provider or to existing providers wanting to expand their services or the number of people they serve. Grants of $100,000 to $250,000 are available to organizations to expand their ability to provide services to older adults and people with disabilities in rural and underserved communities. The state is particularly interested in organizations serving people with complex needs, the LGBTQ+ population, and organizations providing language support and culturally specific services. Applicants who are eligible for the grants include:

• Organizations who want to become an HCBS provider for the first time
• Existing HCBS providers who wish to expand their existing services to reach more people, or develop, become licensed, and enroll with DHS to deliver a new service

DHS will accept grant applications through Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023, by 4 p.m. Central Time. Applicants can find details on the application process on the Provider Capacity Grants webpage.

Key information

For those persons or entities interested in learning more about this opportunity, DHS is offering two Responder Conferences where they will provide detailed information about the opportunity and the grant application process. The following are other critical dates for this grant opportunity.

• RFP published:  Dec. 12, 2022
• Responder's Conference #1:  Dec. 20, 2022
• Responder's Conference #2:  Jan. 4, 2023
• Questions due:  Jan. 4, 2023 (optional)
• Applications due:  Jan. 17, 2023
• Anticipated notice of award:  Feb.20, 2023
• Grant period begins:  March 1, 2023

For more information, review the Provider Capacity Grants webpage.