673438 - FY27 RFP COMPADM26005 Communities of Care Co-Location Program
Funding Opportunity Details
Healthy Hometowns
Final Application Deadline: Sep 1, 2026 12:00 PM
Status Posted
Posted Date Jul 14, 2026 2:52 PM
Award Amount RangeNot Applicable
Project Dates 10/31/2026 - 09/30/2031
Award Announcement Date 10/16/2026
Categorical Area
Recurring Opportunity No
Program Officer Ryan Roovaart
Phone (515) 350-3598 x
Email [email protected]
Description
The purpose of Request for Proposal (RFP) #COMPADM26005 is to identify qualified applicants to serve as pilot Communities of Care Co-Location Sites for the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (the Agency).
This procurement seeks to establish rural Co-Location Sites where multiple providers work together in one place so residents can access a broad range of services that address health and health related social needs in a single visit. This project will also transform Rural healthcare delivery by providing an opportunity for Co-location Sites to share costs and sustain care long term in their local communities. The Co‑Location Sites will bring together at least three separate and distinct service delivery entities, each offering different types of initiatives or services, which will collaborate in integrating services within a single rural location. The purpose of these co-location sites is to expand and sustain access to care in rural communities, foster new partnerships among local providers, improve chronic disease outcomes, and embed preventive and chronic disease management services so individuals can access multiple coordinated appointments in one place.
Through the Healthy Hometowns Rural Health Transformation Program, Iowa is working toward innovative and transformative models of healthcare delivery to best serve rural Iowans.
This procurement is supported by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling approximately $209,040,063.71 over a five-year period with 100 percent funded by CMS/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official view of, nor an endorsement, by CMS/HHS, or the U.S. Government.
Iowa’s year two award for this program is anticipated by October 31, 2026, and budget amounts could change at that time. All activities presented within this RFP, including access to funds, are subject to CMS approval of the Agency’s year 2 budget.
This work implements a portion of the Communities of Care initiative of the Iowa Healthy Hometowns Project, funded through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Rural Health Transformation Program, opportunity #: CMS-RHT-26-001.
Applicants for this RFP will be known as Co-Location Site Leads. Co-Location Site Leads will identify at least three separate and distinct service delivery entities (inclusive of the Co-Location Site Lead to make a total of three) in which each will provide different types of initiatives or services at a single Rural site.
Service delivery entities may include, but are not limited to:
· Local public health agencies
· Federally Qualified Health Centers,
· Community Health Centers,
· Rural Health Clinics
· Hospitals
· Physician groups and other primary care providers
· Behavioral health organizations
· Substance use treatment programs
· Pharmacies
· Dentists and oral health providers
· Maternal, adolescent, and child health entities
· Nutrition services
· Aging and disability service organizations
· Community Based Organizations
· Outpatient rehabilitation services
· Minor urgent care clinics
· Laboratories and diagnostic testing entities
· Other healthcare or social service entities committed to reducing chronic disease
These entities are expected to collaborate on the application; however, the Co-Location Site Lead is ultimately responsible for submitting the application and leading the work of the funded Co-Location Site.
At least one of the service delivery entities must provide services related to chronic disease prevention and management.
The applicant may include up to two Service Delivery Entities at the Co-Location Site who are affiliated with or managed by the same organization. However, priority points in the application scoring shall be awarded for Co-Location Sites that indicate that all three (3) Co-Location Site Service Delivery Entities (inclusive of the Co-Location Site Lead) are not affiliated with or managed by the same organization.
Priority points shall be awarded to applicants in which at least one of the three designated Co-Location Site Service Delivery Entities is a provider that offers services that addresses health related social needs.
The Co-Location Site Lead must include signed memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with all proposed service delivery entities at the time of application (signed by ALL parties). These MOUs must demonstrate the partners’ commitment to collaboration and state that the parties are working in good faith toward a formal legal agreement within six months of the MOU’s signature date. This Agreement must be signed by an authorized official from the Co-Location Site Lead Entity and the other organization that will join the site. Agreements must also show mutual agreement on the budget included in the application (refer to section 1.03).
Co-Location Sites may include more than three service delivery entities, but only three will be considered for evaluation in this procurement. Only three service delivery sites will receive financial support through this procurement unless prior written approval is received from the Agency following the selection of applications.
EVENT
DATE
RFP Issued
July 14, 2026
Letter of Intent (Mandatory)
August 10, 2026, by 4:00 PM
Non-Disclosure Agreement or equivalent, required if applicable (refer to 1.03)
August 10, 2026, by 4:00 PM
Written Questions and Responses
Round 1 Questions Due:
Responses Posted By:
July 27, 2026, by 4:00 PM
August 3, 2026, by 4:00 PM
Round 2 Questions Due:
Responses Posted By:
August 10, 2026, by 4:00 PM
August 17, 2026 by 4:00 PM
Applicant’s Conference (Optional)
August 5, 2026, at 3:00 PM
Applications Due
September 1, 2026, by 12:00 PM
Applicant’s Oral Presentations, if requested by the Agency
On or around October 2, 2026
Post Notice of Intent to Award
On or around October 16, 2026
Attachments
| Description | File Name | Type | Size | Upload Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A. Communities of Care Co Location RFP | A. Communities of Care Co Location RFP.pdf | 633 KB | 07/13/2026 02:48 PM | |
| B. Work Plan Formatting Specifications | B. Work Plan Formatting Specifications.pdf | 120 KB | 07/13/2026 02:48 PM | |
| C. HHS Application Instructions_Guidance New IG | C. HHS Application Instructions_Guidance New IG.pdf | 2 MB | 07/13/2026 02:49 PM | |
| D. Sample Draft Contract Community of Care Co-Location | D. Sample Draft Contract Community of Care Co-Location.pdf | 332 KB | 07/13/2026 02:49 PM | |
| E. Co-Location Proposed Line Item Budget | E. Co-Location Proposed Line Item Budget.xlsx | xlsx | 37 KB | 07/13/2026 02:50 PM |
| F. Iowa HHS District Map | F. Iowa HHS District Map.pdf | 669 KB | 07/13/2026 02:50 PM | |
| G. Amendment 1 RFP COMPADM26005 Communities of Care Co-Location Program 08-03-26 | G. Amendment 1 RFP COMPADM26005 Communities of Care Co-Location Program 08-03-26.pdf | 142 KB | 08/03/2026 02:59 PM |
Website links
| Description | Link |
|---|---|
| A. IowaGrants Registration and Login Instructions | https://dom.iowa.gov/state-government/grant-management |
| B. General Terms and Contingent Terms | https://hhs.iowa.gov/initiatives/contract-terms |
| C. Iowa HHS Rural Health Transformation (RHT) | Health & Human Services | https://hhs.iowa.gov/initiatives/healthy-hometowns-iowas-rural-health-transformation-plan |
| D. CMS Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program | CMS | https://www.cms.gov/initiatives/rural-health-transformation-rht-program/overview |
| E. Rural Health Grants Eligibility Analyzer | https://data.hrsa.gov/topics/rural-health/rural-health-eligibility |
| F. Iowa HHS Districts | https://www.iowagrants.gov/fileDownloadExternal.do?filename=1760541640021_E.+Iowa+HHS+District+Map.pdf |
| G. Thrive Iowa Community Alliance | https://hhs.iowa.gov/family-community/thrive-iowa |
| H. Iowa Grants | https://www.iowagrants.gov/index.do |
| Submitted Date | Question | Answer |
|---|---|---|
| Jul 27, 2026 12:24 PM | The position that is employed 100% to coordinate the project, can this be more than one individuals that make up 100% FTE? Can the co-location site lead be a few blocks from the site location of the other two services? The site that the other two services would be is rented by the site lead and performs other services there as well. The rented site shares the same server and phone system as the site lead. | The duties of the project coordinator must represent 1.0 FTE. The number of personnel to implement the duties and responsibilities of the project coordinator is at the discretion of the applicant and associated partners for the project. Section 2.03.B 1.a. Scope of Work: The Co-Location Site Lead in conjunction and collaboration with the Co-Location Site Service Delivery Entities will co-locate into a single rural site location at least three (3) service delivery entities. Also see Section 2.02 Definitions “Co-Location Sites”. Sites cannot be a few blocks from each other to qualify for this procurement. |
| Jul 27, 2026 3:15 PM | Must the three Service Delivery Entities remain independent and unaffiliated throughout the full five-year contract term to retain priority points, or is affiliation determined at the time of application? Specifically, if one Service Delivery Entity is acquired by the Co-Location Site Lead during the term, does that acquisition affect the priority points awarded at application, or create any eligibility or compliance concern? | Service delivery entities do not need to remain independent and unaffiliated throughout the full five year contract term to retain priority points assigned at the time of application. Any future acquisitions would need to be reviewed with the Agency at that time to ensure compliance with all grant requirements. |
| Jul 27, 2026 3:16 PM | Section 1.01 awards priority points when no two of the three Service Delivery Entities are "affiliated with or managed by the same organization." How does the Agency define affiliation for this purpose? As a specific example: the applicant is a hospital, and a proposed Service Delivery Entity is a separate 501(c)(3) with its own independent board of directors. The two organizations share one individual who holds a leadership role at the applicant and also serves as a board member of the separate entity. Would these two organizations be considered affiliated or managed by the same organization? | Two organizations would be considered to be affiliated with or managed by the same organization if they have a common parent organization and/or Management Services and Affiliation Agreements. Additionally, organizations that are separate branches of the same company (for example, a for-profit branch and a non-profit foundation) would be considered to be managed by the same organization. The agency does not have enough information from the question submitted to make a formal determination regarding this specific situation. |
| Jul 27, 2026 3:17 PM | The RFP lists eligible service delivery entity types and separately references coordination with school-based initiatives. Can a school or school district serve as one of the three counted Service Delivery Entities at a Co-Location Site, or are schools intended only as external referral and coordination partners? | A school or school district may count as one of the three Service Delivery Entities if the applicant demonstrates that it meets the RFP’s definition of a Co Location Site Service Delivery Entity—meaning committed to reducing chronic disease and providing services at a single rural site. Because the RFP allows Service Delivery Entities to include, but not be limited to, a wide range of healthcare and social service organizations, schools may qualify when they fulfill the minimum requirements identified in Section 2.03 Scope of Work. If they do not meet all of those requirements, they should instead be treated as external referral or coordination partners. |
| Jul 27, 2026 3:19 PM | The RFP requires that all Co-Location Sites exchange data through Iowa's Health Information Exchange. How does this requirement apply to non-clinical Service Delivery Entities, such as fitness, food access, or other non-medical partners, that are not traditional HIE participants? Is it sufficient for the medical entity to maintain the HIE connection while non-clinical partners share data through other consented mechanisms? | The Iowa Health Information Exchange (HIE) is a secure, statewide network that enables healthcare providers, payers, public health agencies, and other entities to share health information across different organizations and systems. Its purpose is to improve care coordination, quality, and efficiency by ensuring that accurate and timely information is available to those involved in a patient’s care. Providers of non clinical services will be expected to work with Co Location Site Lead and Co-Location Site Service Delivery Entities to share appropriate information (with patient consent) so that both clinical and non clinical members of the care team can support all aspects of the client’s health needs. The functionality of the Iowa Health Information Exchange is expanding through the Rural Health Transformation Program and Iowa HHS will work collaboratively with awardees of this procurement to use new features for collecting non-clinical data. |
| Jul 27, 2026 3:20 PM | If an applicant proposes a co-location site at a clinic that is newly opening around the same time as the contract start, does that qualify as "establishing a new Co-Location Site" or as "expanding an already established" one? | Refer to Section 1.03 Eligibility Requirements for the descriptions of “Establish a new Co-Location Site” and “Expand an already established Co-Location Site,” and apply the specific criteria outlined in each to make the appropriate determination. Considerations in RFP Section 2.04.B Cost Restrictions may also help clarify whether a proposal qualifies as establishing a new site or expanding an existing one. |