RFA #20707 - Treat, Cure & Eliminate HCV- Comp C

The New York State Department of Health AIDS Institute, Division of HIV and Hepatitis Health Care, Bureau of Hepatitis Health Care and Epidemiology has issued Request for Applications (RFA) #20707, Treat, Cure and Eliminate: Advancing Health Equity Among People Living with Hepatitis C. Component C of this opportunity is focused on reaching rural communities and marginalized populations through telehealth and telementoring models. The purpose of Component C is to expand provider capacity and treatment access in rural areas and high-risk settings where hepatitis C treatment is often unavailable. This aligns with the state’s broader hepatitis C elimination plan, which aims to end hepatitis C as a public health problem in New York State by 2030. Component C funds not-for-profit academic medical centers in New York State to establish regional hepatitis C telehealth and telementoring programs. These programs are intended to function as hub-and-spoke models, with the academic medical center acting as the hub and rural health care facilities or high-risk settings serving as spokes. Telehealth services will be provided directly to patients in rural counties or other settings with high prevalence of hepatitis C but limited provider availability. Telementoring activities will train and support clinicians in rural or high-risk settings to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to provide hepatitis C treatment locally. Priority populations include people living with hepatitis C in rural areas and providers in health care settings where treatment is lacking. A total of $1,152,000 annually is available under Component C, with up to three awards, one per eligible region. Each award may not exceed $384,000 annually. The geographic regions eligible for awards are Central New York, Northeast/Hudson Valley, and Western New York. Contracts are anticipated to run from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2031, contingent upon continued funding and satisfactory performance. Funded applicants will be expected to employ at least one full-time care coordinator, designate a lead clinician for telehealth and telementoring activities, and partner with at least five rural health care facilities or high-risk settings within their region. Memorandums of Understanding from these partners will be required within six months of contract execution. Eligible applicants must be not-for-profit academic medical centers in New York State. For purposes of this RFA, an academic medical center is defined as an organization administratively integrated with a medical school and serving as the principal site for medical education of students and postgraduate trainees. Applicants must be prequalified in the Statewide Financial System at the time of submission. Applications must include required attachments such as a Statement of Assurances, Hepatitis C Treatment Attestation, staffing plan, letters of intent from proposed partner sites, and plans to address social determinants of health and client engagement strategies. Applications must be submitted online through the Statewide Financial System as a single PDF no larger than 20MB. The release date of this opportunity is September 25, 2025. Questions must be submitted by October 9, 2025, and responses will be posted on or about October 28, 2025. Applications are due November 18, 2025, at 4:00 PM ET. No letters of intent or applicant conferences are required. Late applications will not be accepted. Applications are reviewed competitively, and awards will be made to the highest scoring applicants within each eligible region. The primary contact for this RFA is Colleen Flanigan, RN, MS, of the Bureau of Hepatitis Health Care and Epidemiology, New York State Department of Health/AIDS Institute, who may be contacted at hepatabc@health.ny.gov. Technical support for the submission process is provided by the Statewide Financial System Help Desk. Funded programs must report monthly data through the AIDS Institute Reporting System (AIRS), submit narrative reports, and participate in statewide hepatitis C elimination efforts. They must also comply with New York State AIDS Institute standards for health equity, MWBE participation, and health literacy. Component C is designed to ensure equitable treatment access and build local capacity in underserved regions, advancing statewide progress toward eliminating hepatitis C.

Submit early, include partner letters, ensure single PDF under 20MB, prepare strong evaluation and workforce capacity plan