National Infrastructure for Mitigating the Impact of COVID-19 within Racial and Ethnic Minority Communities | MP CPI 20 006

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1) What is the name of this grant opportunity?

The opportunity is titled National Infrastructure for Mitigating the Impact of COVID-19 within Racial and Ethnic Minority Communities.

2) What is the Funding Opportunity Number (FON)?

The Funding Opportunity Number is MP CPI 20 006.

3) Which federal agency issued this opportunity?

It was issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, through the Office of Minority Health (OMH).

4) What type of funding mechanism is this?

This program is structured as a cooperative agreement, meaning OMH expected close collaboration with the recipient, including jointly developed performance metrics and reporting expectations.

5) What is the activity category and CFDA number associated with this program?

The activity category is Disaster Prevention and Relief, and it is associated with CFDA 93.137.

6) What is the main purpose of the program?

The program was designed to rapidly strengthen COVID-19 communication, coordination, and service connections for communities experiencing disproportionate harm from the pandemic, especially racial and ethnic minority populations, rural communities, and other disadvantaged groups.

7) What problem was OMH trying to address with this grant?

OMH aimed to reduce disparities in COVID-19 impacts by building an infrastructure that can move accurate, timely information and practical support through trusted channels, while also capturing what works and spreading those approaches across jurisdictions.

8) Who was the program intended to serve?

The focus was on populations facing disproportionately high COVID-19 risk and severe outcomes, particularly racial and ethnic minority communities, rural communities, and other disadvantaged groups in geographic high-impact areas.

9) What is meant by a "national-to-local network" in this opportunity?

It refers to a coordinated structure linking national organizations with state, territorial, tribal, and community-based partners (including State Offices of Minority Health) so that COVID-19 messaging, guidance, and resources can be delivered through organizations communities already trust.

10) What role was the lead applicant expected to play?

The lead applicant was expected to organize and coordinate the network, build relationships and workflows for timely information dissemination, and ensure the network could also connect people to concrete services such as testing, healthcare, and social supports.

11) What were the core tasks the funded project was expected to carry out?

The notice describes several connected tasks, including:

• Developing a strategic information dissemination network across national, state, tribal, territorial, and local organizations.
• Producing and distributing culturally and linguistically appropriate, multi-media outreach and education materials.
• Using multiple communication methods aligned with how people in high-impact areas receive information (for example, community channels, faith-based networks, local media, and digital platforms).
• Identifying geographic high-impact areas in states, tribes, and territories where risk and severe outcomes were substantially higher for target populations.
• Building and strengthening partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs) as trusted local voices.
• Creating service linkages to help people act on guidance (testing, healthcare, supportive services).
• Identifying, documenting, and disseminating successful strategies used across jurisdictions to support response, recovery, and resilience.
• Implementing monitoring, evaluation, and quality improvement, and sharing findings and lessons learned.

12) What does "culturally and linguistically appropriate" mean in this program context?

It means outreach and education materials were expected to be tailored to the language needs and cultural context of the communities being served, using formats and messengers that align with local trust and communication patterns.

13) What kinds of communication channels were envisioned?

The opportunity references multiple methods, including community channels, faith-based networks, local media, digital platforms, and other formats that match how people in high-impact areas actually receive information.

14) What are "high-impact areas" as described in the opportunity?

High-impact areas are geographic areas within states, tribes, and territories where racial and ethnic minority, rural, and disadvantaged individuals faced substantially higher risk of COVID-19 infection and severe outcomes.

15) What risk drivers did the notice highlight for disproportionate COVID-19 impact?

The opportunity notes risk drivers such as higher prevalence of underlying conditions (including hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, asthma, and COPD or other lung disease), as well as structural and systemic barriers like crowded living or work conditions, limited ability to physically distance, and obstacles to accessing healthcare and social services.

16) Why did OMH emphasize partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs)?

CBOs were emphasized because they often serve as trusted local voices and established points of connection for communities in high-impact areas. The program aimed to use those trusted relationships to make public health messaging both credible and actionable.

17) What are "service linkages" in the context of this grant?

Service linkages refer to helping people move from receiving information to actually accessing support, such as where to get tested, how to reach healthcare, and how to obtain supportive services that reduce barriers to isolation, treatment, and recovery.

18) Was the program focused only on messaging?

No. While communication and education were central, the program also stressed coordination and connections to services, so guidance could be followed in practice, not just understood in theory.

19) What did OMH mean by building a "durable" infrastructure?

The goal was to build a coordinated system and set of relationships that could reliably move accurate information and support through trusted channels over time, and not be limited to one-off outreach efforts.

20) What role did learning and replication play in the program design?

A stated expectation was to identify, document, and disseminate successful strategies used by states, tribes, territories, and local communities, so effective approaches could be adopted more quickly across jurisdictions rather than remaining siloed.

21) What were the evaluation and reporting expectations?

The recipient was expected to develop and implement a monitoring, evaluation, and quality improvement plan, document and share findings (including successes and lessons learned), and meet performance metrics developed in collaboration with OMH as part of the cooperative agreement.

22) How many awards did OMH expect to make?

OMH anticipated making a single award (Expected Awards: 1).

23) How long was the project period?

The project period was described as up to three years, with support for one award annually during that period.

24) How much funding was available?

The opportunity references a total project budget of up to $40,000,000 over the project period, and also lists an award ceiling of $22,000,000. The notice suggests the specific limit could vary by award year, appropriations, or how OMH structured annualized funding within the broader multi-year effort.

25) When was the opportunity posted and when did it close?

The opportunity was created on May 1, 2020, with an original closing date of May 11, 2020, reflecting an urgent early-pandemic timeline.

26) What does the short application window suggest about OMH's intent?

Based on the dates provided, OMH intended to stand up national coordination quickly in the early stages of the pandemic, prioritizing rapid deployment of a network and materials into high-impact communities.

27) Who was eligible to apply?

Eligibility was broadly described as "Others", with additional eligibility details referenced in the full announcement.

28) Why did OMH connect this opportunity to previous public health emergencies?

The rationale notes that disproportionate impacts in racial and ethnic minority groups echoed patterns seen in prior emergencies such as H1N1 and Zika, and that disparities can be magnified when chronic disease burden intersects with inequities in resources, healthcare access, and social supports.

29) How were rural communities positioned within the program's priorities?

Rural communities were recognized as vulnerable due to constrained local capacity and fewer healthcare and social service resources, and were included among the populations the program aimed to better support through coordination and service connections.

30) What was the overall strategy for reducing COVID-19 disparities described in the notice?

The opportunity emphasized coordinating trusted messengers, tailoring communication to culture and language, targeting highest-risk locations, and connecting people to the services that make public health guidance feasible to follow.