CSH Initiatives and Products: HRSA

CSH is seeking an individual/organization to provide graphic design services through a United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) funded initiative. This HHS funded initiative through the Health Services Resources Administration (HRSA), Bureau of Primary Healthcare (BPHC) provides training and technical assistance to Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) nationally. The appropriate individual/organization(s) will need to be able to provide graphic design services for the following:

• Template Development.
• Resource Documents.
• Infographic Design.
• Presentation Template.

Specifically, this will include but may not be limited to the below products:

• Improving Access to Care for Residents of Supportive Housing – Infographic
• Homelessness and Access to Care: Best Practices for Health Centers – Infographic
• Medicaid and Housing-Related Services – What Health Centers Need to Know – Infographic
• Connecting to Care at the Intersection of HIV and Hepatitis C – Template and Infographic

Funding Available
Based on funding approval, an amount not to exceed $15,000 is available for this project. Per federal regulations, the services will be paid for as an hourly rate and can’t exceed $95.81/hour.

Contract Timeframe
The contract will cover the period beginning with the immediate selection of an applicant at the close of the RFP and end June 30, 2025.

Application Process
In order for consideration and participation in this work, apply by emailing complete application to fedta@csh.org by COB January 31, 2025. Please use “HRSA Graphic Design Proposal” as the subject line.

Applications may be submitted in any format the respondent chooses to use. Applications will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Demonstrated successful performance of substantially similar work;
• Relevant project work;
• Years of relevant experience; and
• Rate reasonableness and overall cost of services.
• Special consideration will be given to small, disadvantaged, minority, or women owned businesses.

Please note that CSH requires subcontractors, including individuals and sole proprietors, to carry workers’ compensation and Commercial General Liability insurance while performing work under a CSH subcontract and should be prepared to list CSH as an “additionally insured” before contract execution if selected.

Evaluation
CSH will evaluate applications utilizing the following criteria and will select the valid proposal:

• Demonstrated successful performance of substantially similar work;
• Relevant project work;
• Experience and expertise;
• Years of relevant experience; and
• Rate reasonableness and overall cost of services.

Organizations must be able to comply with the administrative and financial management requirements of the prime award from HRSA including the financial management standards for funds control and accountability and the HHS Grants Policy found at https://www.hrsa.gov/sites/default/files/grants/hhsgrantspolicy.pdf .

Individuals and organizations cannot be identified in the System for Award Management found at sam.gov as have existing, pending, or expired debarments that preclude them from doing business with the United States government and cannot have convictions for, nor have any pending indictments for, fraud or a criminal offense in connection with a public contract or subcontract.

We will contact you regarding the determination of adding you as a CSH subcontractor. If you have any questions, please email Dominic Sistena at fedta@csh.org, including “RFP Graphic Design” in the subject line.

This session outlines unique service enhancements to better serve formerly homeless individuals in supportive housing to provide comprehensive, age-appropriate care for their consumers.

Attendees gained strategies to effectively engage youth, adults, and aging populations who have experienced housing instability and chronic homelessness. 

This webinar took place on December 11, 2024

As health centers seek to address social drivers of health in tandem with goals relating to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, addressing the housing needs for individuals at risk for HIV is more important than ever.

This webinar addresses partnerships between health centers and housing providers to improve access to housing resources and improve engagement with vulnerable, high-risk populations such as individuals with a history of homelessness and/or substance use disorder and other risk factors.

This webinar took place on December 10, 2024

A national webinar and discussion for health centers working with patients experiencing housing insecurity. This webinar provides information on accessing housing resources in your community.

Learn how to use our new Health and Housing Partnerships Toolkit to connect patients to Federal, State and Local resources. Participants learned about the benefits of partnering with the housing sector and the impact on patient health outcomes. This webinar took place on December 4, 2024.

Health centers individually and collectively manage large amounts of data. Patients at health centers are asked to fill and refill out paperwork, surveys, and assessments. Many patients and providers report that the repetition of collecting the same data points can be discouraging, even appearing to undervalue their experiences. In some cases, repeating patient medical, housing, and personal histories can create harm and re-traumatization.

In this webinar we explored why and how lived expertise must be sought after and valued by health centers and allied organizations to improve every stage of the data management process from collection and analysis to data sharing, access, and decision-making, including discussion about Information Blocking rules and navigating the tension between reporting and regulations.

We discussed the nexus of racial equity and lived expertise in data management, and how data collected or used improperly or carelessly have the potential to harm. This webinar took place on November 21, 2024.

A growing number of states are using their Medicaid programs to address the Social Drivers of Health for Medicaid members. This trend includes Housing Related Services (HRS) such as Housing Navigation, Tenancy Sustaining Services and funds for move in costs. The referral processes and details will differ state to state and CSH is tracking those details with an eye to scaling supportive housing services in our communities.

Interest in these details vary by audience. State medicaid offices are interested in which Medicaid authority, delivery system or payment mechanism is used so they can develop their own programs and build on lessons learned of early adopter states. Health centers as referral sources for these services want to how what are the services, the target population and how to make referrals. Supportive housing providers want to know service definitions, provider requirements and rates to see if it makes sense for their agency to contract for these services.

CSH has summarized publicly available material in a system to answer the key questions via audience and state.

Mental health can be viewed as both a cause and effect of homelessness. It is important to note that Serious Mental Illnesses such as post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, and anti-social personality disorders are not the primary indicator that a person will experience homelessness throughout the course of their lifetime. When coupled with factors such as substance use, economic instability, limited access to affordable housing, health insurance, and health care providers, adverse childhood experiences, traumatic brain injuries, and societal and internalized stigma can disproportionately lead to episodic and chronic homelessness.  

Many people such as these will need supportive housing to successfully stabilize in the community. When serving  those experiencing homelessness, behavioral health providers need to keep in mind the need for:   

• Flexibility, particularly in outreach and engagement strategies 
• Partnerships with homeless and housing organizations 
• The value of peers, especially as it relates to outreach strategies 
• Financing that sustains their efforts 

 Health centers, primary and behavioral health service providers, and housing providers will learn about the research and evidenced based practices for serving this population.  The guide will cover the central role of peer support and outreach and engagement strategies.  Finally, the guide will cover the financing possibilities and challenges of supporting outreach and engagement efforts.  

Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) continues to be one of the greatest public health challenges in our communities. Recent data shows a national 2.8% increase in overdose deaths between August 2022 and August 2023.1  The White House has recently released the Challenge to Save Lives from Overdose  to add to our country’s evolving response. The complexity of the issue means that addressing the overdose crisis requires a multi-pronged strategy that includes prevention, harm reduction, treatment and recovery services. Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) are at the front lines of these efforts, serving over 3.3 million patients with substance use disorder in 2022.2 

As of February 2022, 48 states have accepted settlement for various lawsuits brought against pharmaceutical opioid distributors and one manufacturer in response to the national opioid and overdose crisis. Commonly referred to as the “Opioid Settlement funds”, approximately $26 billion have been distributed to states and local governments to support a range of activities addressing the root causes and impact of the opioid crisis. Beyond the Approved Uses Guidance, there is wide latitude for how to use these funds. The national Opioid Settlement Tracker is a resource that can help Health Centers and Primary Care Associations determine the process for how these funds are allocated and any pathways to influence that process. Housing creation, including supportive housing and recovery housing are cited in the national settlement agreement as potential approved uses. This analysis will focus on how and where funds are being leveraged to support housing access and other services that benefit health center patients. 

Due to limited resources, fewer community connections, and more exposure to the elements, people experiencing unsheltered homelessness have a heightened risk of injury and severe health issues. This is especially true during times of disaster and public emergency. As many communities learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, meaningful outreach and linkage to care for unsheltered individuals is vital for public health. This national webinar highlighted emerging practices in reaching unsheltered populations, with a focus on the importance of peer specialists with lived expertise. Attendees learned and discussed relevant strategies for health and housing-focused outreach to people experiencing unsheltered homelessness.

This publication aims to increase the recognition of housing as an evidence based, multifunctional intervention for people with HIV experiencing homelessness. Housing is a strategic and powerful driver for improving clinical outcome measures on a client, clinic, and systems level. This publication will elevate key findings in research, best practices, and community strategies where housing as an intervention for HIV linkage to care has been realized and implemented.

Readers of this publication will gain an understanding of the critical importance that housing has in relation to linkage and retention in HIV care, insights into patient-centered approaches for assessing and addressing housing needs, and explore challenges, barriers, and strategies at both patient and community levels to address housing instability in the context of HIV care.