Ryan White Part B Lead Agents

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has announced the Ryan White Part B Lead Agent Grant opportunity, a competitive, one-year initiative aimed at supporting individuals living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) across Illinois. This grant is funded through a combination of Ryan White Part B (RWPB) federal funds, Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA), and Illinois General Revenue Funds (GRF). Administered by the Office of Performance Management within IDPH, this grant opportunity emphasizes a coordinated, regional approach by utilizing eight HIV Regional Networks throughout the state. Each network is responsible for ensuring access to essential medical, housing, and support services for underserved and disproportionately impacted populations living with HIV/AIDS. The primary objective of this funding opportunity is to ensure the delivery and oversight of core Ryan White Part B services, including medical case management, outpatient ambulatory care, oral health care, and mental health services, as well as supportive services such as housing, food assistance, and transportation. In addition to these service components, funded entities—referred to as Lead Agents—are responsible for broader public health roles such as reducing HIV transmission among pregnant people through perinatal enhanced case management and supporting individuals returning from incarceration through the Community Re-entry Project. This project connects clients with correctional case managers and coordinates medical, behavioral health, and reentry services. Lead Agents are expected to allocate their funding according to specific rules. Awards must devote 75% of Ryan White Part B funding to core medical services and 25% to supportive services, adhering to definitions laid out in HRSA Policy Clarification Notice 16-02. Each award also includes set portions for administration, planning, evaluation, and quality assurance activities (20%), as well as a 5% allocation from General Revenue Funds (GRF) and proportional HOPWA and Minority AIDS Initiative (MAI) awards. Notably, any HOPWA and GRF-funded housing services must not exceed 25% of the total award. All funded services must be billed through IDPH’s Provide Enterprise system and comply with Payor of Last Resort policies and other federal restrictions. Applicants must be qualified through the State of Illinois GATA system and meet multiple eligibility criteria, including tax compliance, financial soundness, good standing with the Secretary of State, and adherence to nondiscrimination policies. Eligibility is open to tax-exempt and governmental organizations, and entities located within the regions they propose to serve will receive priority. Additionally, indirect costs are allowed but capped at 10% of the total grant award unless a different rate is negotiated through the Indirect Cost Rate System. No matching funds are required under this program. All applications must be submitted electronically via IDPH’s EGrAMS system (https://idphgrants.com) between February 10, 2026, and March 12, 2026, by 4:00 PM Central Time. Applicants must complete a detailed Ryan White Budget, a Work Plan, and the application within EGrAMS, with certification steps included. There is no technical assistance session offered for this round. Questions can be directed to Robert Whitmore, Grants Manager for the HIV/AIDS Section ([email protected], 217-524-5983), or Philip Peredo at the Office of Disease Control – Grants Unit ([email protected], 217-299-6229). Awards are expected to be announced approximately six weeks after the application deadline, with the program period running from April 1, 2026, through March 31, 2027. As this grant opportunity is issued on an annual basis, applicants may anticipate a similar release in early 2027. Performance metrics tied to the funding include benchmarks for viral suppression and service utilization across a range of medical and supportive services. All applicants must adhere strictly to IDPH standards and policies, including documentation and reporting requirements via the Provide Enterprise system.

Applicants must validate the application before submission and ensure all attachments are included in EGrAMS. All service documentation must be recorded in Provide Enterprise.