Center of Excellence on Public Health and Homelessness
Contact Info
Request for Proposals: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs
Updated 1/19/24
This RFP is specifically for applications for funding harm reduction, health, and housing hubs. The purpose of these grants is to reduce fatal overdoses through coordinated housing, harm reduction, social and medical services. Grantees will engage with people experiencing homelessness at high risk of overdose and offer services to assist with housing stability, harm reduction, and health care. All hubs will need to include a combination of housing and harm reduction services, but grantees have flexibility in determining where and how to offer services. Our goal is to support organizations with the necessary experiences and expertise to effectively serve people most affected by homelessness and drug-related deaths, specifically African American and American Indian communities.
Eligible applicants
Eligible applicants include community-based organizations, community health centers, federally qualified health centers, tribal governments, faith-based organizations, educational institutions, county governments/community health boards, and any other public or private non-profit, not-for-profit, and for-profit organizations. Applicants are encouraged to apply for funding individually or in collaboration with other qualified and eligible entities to develop a comprehensive proposal. Collaborative proposals must designate a lead applicant.
These grants are dedicated to organizations who have the experience to provide coordinated housing and harm reduction services to people experiencing homelessness in one or more of the following populations:
- People living outside of Hennepin and Ramsey counties.
- American Indian or African American populations at greatest risk of overdose
- People who are pregnant
MDH is committed to having at least one American Indian focused organization awarded through this opportunity.
RFP and application materials
- Request for Proposals: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs for People Experiencing Homelessness (PDF)
- Attachment A: Sample Approaches to Overdose Prevention for People Experiencing Homelessness (PDF)
- Attachment B: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs - Score Sheet (PDF)
- Attachment C: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs - Project Narrative (Word)
- Attachment D: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs - Project Budget and Justification (Word)
- Applicant Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form (PDF)
- Due Diligence Review Form (PDF)
Important dates
Date | Item |
---|---|
Dec. 20, 2023 | Request for proposals released |
Jan. 11, 2024 | Optional informational session at 2 p.m. CST |
Jan. 12, 2024 | RFP question submission deadline at 4:30 p.m. CST health.homelessness@state.mn.us Subject line: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs RFP Question |
Jan. 16, 2024 | Letter of Intent deadline at 4:30 p.m. CST health.homelessness@state.mn.us Subject line: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs Letter of Intent |
Jan. 19, 2024 | All questions and answers will be posted |
Jan. 31, 2024 | Application submission deadline at 5:30 p.m. CST health.homelessness@state.mn.us Subject line: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs Application |
April 1, 2024 | Anticipated project start date |
March 31, 2028 | Anticipated project end date |
Funding
Funding will be allocated through a competitive process. If selected, you may only incur eligible expenditures when the grant agreement is fully executed and the grant has reached its effective date, whichever is later. These grants use state funding from the Comprehensive Drug Overdose and Morbidity Prevention Act. The estimated total amount of funding that is available under this notice is $900,000 annually. The estimated maximum annual amount for each awarded grantee is $300,000.
Questions and answers
All questions regarding this RFP must be submitted by email to health.homelessness@state.mn.us and include “Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs RFP Question” in the subject line. Please submit questions no later than 4:30 p.m. CST on January 12, 2024. Answers will be posted within five business days on this webpage.
To ensure the proper and fair evaluation of all applications, other communications regarding this RFP including verbal, telephone, written or internet initiated by or on behalf of any applicant to any employee of MDH, other than questions submitted as outlined above, are prohibited. Any violation of this prohibition may result in the disqualification of the applicant.
- Can you tell me what exactly is meant by the “expect to award three applicants?” I interpret that to mean that of all the applications received for the Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs RFP the Department of Health is only going to select three applicants to award. Is that correct?
- Answer: Yes, that is correct. MDH expects to select three applicants to award.
- Are vehicles an eligible expense? We would like to purchase a van to provide mobile services.
- Answer: Vehicles would be an eligible expense provided you can demonstrate that the costs are necessary to achieve the purpose of the grant. Under our standard grant agreement, MDH has the right to transfer all equipment purchased with grant funds, including title, to MDH or to an eligible non-State party named by MDH. At the end of the grant agreement, we would consult with the grantee and our grants office on ownership of equipment purchased with grant funds.
- Is this application open to jurisdictions outside of Minnesota?
- Answer: No. This opportunity is only for organizations serving people in Minnesota.
- Please let us know what you would like included in the RFP so we can send this to you by the required deadline.
- Answer: Section 3.3 of the Request for Proposals: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs for People Experiencing Homelessness (PDF), which begins on page 18, lists all the required information for applying for this grant.
- The RFP states that “grants are dedicated to organizations who have the experience to provide coordinated housing and harm reduction services to people experiencing homelessness in one or more of the following populations: People living outside of Hennepin and Ramsey counties; American Indian or African American populations at greatest risk of overdose; People who are pregnant."… Our services are open to all demographics. Would services through these funds need to be limited to African American or American Indian individuals?
- Answer: Applicants need to show that they can effectively serve one or more of the priority populations, but they do not need to exclusively serve people in those groups.
- What kind of settings would qualify for services? The RFP mentioned shelters and libraries. Would we be able to apply these services to an independent housing property?
- Answer: People in independent housing would be eligible for services under this grant if they have recently experienced homelessness.
- Would it be required for the individuals that are served to receive both a housing service and a health service or would they be able to choose which of the services they would like to receive (one from each category, all services)?
- Answer: All services offered through the grant should be voluntary. Grantees must demonstrate the ability to offer housing as well as harm reduction and health services, but participants can decide which services they want to receive.
- If we decide to address the racial disparities in the African American and American Indian communities, is there a particular geographic area that we would have to work with or would we be able to choose?
- Answer: No, each applicant can propose what geographic area they intend to serve.
- Could harm reduction education services include contracting with an overdose response training agency?
- Answer: Yes, this would be considered an eligible harm reduction service.
- Are the slides from the information session available online?
- Answer: Yes, the slides are available as a PDF file under the Optional informational session section.
- Could we use the funds for eviction prevention, or would that fall under the rental arrears umbrella? I know rental arrears are not an eligible expense, but some evictions are for damages to the unit or other problems.
- Answer: The funds cannot be used to pay for damages or other debts owed to a landlord. The funds could be used to pay for legal assistance, conflict mediation, or other services to help participants maintain housing and avoid eviction.
- Are there any specific requirements in terms of content for the LOI or just keep it general?
- Answer: Just one sentence saying your organization intends to apply. It doesn’t commit you to applying, but it will help us estimate how many reviewers we will need.
- Is there any specific criteria from MDH for who could receive rental assistance/rental application fees? We provide shelter and housing-focused case management to individuals experiencing homelessness. Would individuals need to meet additional criteria beyond experiencing homelessness and working with our case managers?
- Answer: No, we do not have any specific criteria for who can receive rental assistance beyond the general instructions described in the RFP that hub services focus on people experiencing homelessness and people who were recently homeless and now live in supportive housing. We will evaluate applications based on how likely they are to achieve the goals of reducing overdoses and improving housing stability. Housing assistance funds should be used to supplement, rather than supplant, other available housing assistance programs.
- Given that three grants are being awarded, is there a minimum request amount that might be considered?
- Answer: There is no minimum budget request. The maximum annual budget request is $300,000.
- Are applicants serving people in Hennepin and Ramsey County eligible to apply?
- Answer: Yes. Organizations serving people in Hennepin or Ramsey County are eligible to apply.
- Could funds be used to cover space rental for an existing SSP if the space was then used as this hub?
- Answer: Yes, but the funds must be used to add or expand services and not to supplant existing funding.
- Could funds be used to upgrade client tracking software as a part of supporting this work?
- Answer: Yes. This could be an eligible expense to support required data collection and reporting activities.
- Are there any circumstances where grant hubs could be used to help a client cover past-due rent? For example, if they have recently fallen behind because of a large increase in rent.
- Answer: No, these funds cannot be used to pay for rental arrears under any circumstances.
- We are a youth-serving organization and serve multiple of the listed priority populations with wraparound support including housing, harm reduction, and health services. Would our age limit prohibit us from applying for this grant?
- Answer: No. Youth-serving organizations are eligible to apply for the grant.
- Is there room for funding to support planning in this grant (e.g., activities that are not direct service). Do we need to be shovel ready?
- Answer: Yes, these funds can be used to support planning. If awarded, each grantee will be required to develop a logic model, with MDH’s assistance, within six months of the award start date. The logic model should describe, in detail, testable mechanisms for how the grantee plans to reduce fatal overdoses and improve housing stability. The grant can be used to cover staffing and other expenses to support this process and other planning necessary to deliver services. Grantees should be prepared to provide direct services to hub participants within the first year of their grants.
- We provide housing-focused prevention and overdose prevention services. Am I understanding correctly that these grant funds could supplement, complement, and/or augment current services/activities?
- Answer: Yes.
- Is the University of Minnesota considered an educational institution? If so, will we still require a resolution or full support of a Tribal Government if the Hub is in an off-reservation area?
- Answer: Yes, the University of Minnesota is considered an educational institution. In this case, written support from a tribal government is not required. However, if the proposal is focused on American Indian populations, we do recommend consulting with the relevant tribal governments.
- As a Housing Stabilization Provider would I be eligible for this grant to help people pay for deposits for a home?
- Answer: Housing stabilization providers are eligible to apply provided they meet the criteria for eligible applicants in Section 1.4 of the Request for Proposals: Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs for People Experiencing Homelessness (PDF). The funds can be used for security deposits for a rental but cannot be used for down payment assistance for homeownership.
- I did see that people who did not live in Hennepin or Ramsey County don’t qualify for us to use the grant on them. My question is they are the highest percentage of being homeless come from those counties is there any reconsideration on this?
- Answer: This is incorrect. People who live in Hennepin or Ramsey County ARE ELIGIBLE to receive services through the Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing hubs.
- If the person is pregnant and from Hennepin or Ramsey County would they still be eligible for the grant?
- Answer: Yes, provided the person is experiencing homelessness or was recently homeless and now lives in supportive housing.
- How would I prove that an American Indian or African American population would be at high risk? Would that mean people who specifically have prior had drug issues, or people who could potentially start using if we keep them in the street?
- Answer: Our data shows that American Indian Minnesotans are ten times as likely to die from a drug overdose than white Minnesotans and Black Minnesotans are three times as likely to die from drug overdose than white Minnesotans (Drug Overdose Dashboard). Applicants do not need to prove that these populations are at higher risk, but they will need to describe their population of focus and why they chose it in the Project Narrative (attachment C of the RFP).
- The current timeline for applications works against the ability of community partners to properly coordinate, plan, design, and respond to this request with the broadbased solutions that will drive results for our communities. This is particularly true for Native American and Black led and serving organizations, who often operate with limited capacity. Can MDH extend the current deadline to February 29, 2024, or meet with prospective applicants to discuss a more feasible submission deadline?
- Answer: We appreciate this feedback and will take it in consideration for future grant opportunities. Unfortunately, we cannot extend our deadline of January 31 at 5:30 p.m. because it would jeopardize our ability to start the grant program as scheduled on April 1. We hope that this will not be a barrier for qualified organizations to apply. As noted in Section 2.1 of the proposal, we are prioritizing applications from organizations with a demonstrated ability to serve African American and American Indian communities. We have committed to awarding at least one grant to an American Indian focused organization. In addition, if awarded, grantees will be able to use these funds for further planning, coordination, and community engagement.
- Answer: We appreciate this feedback and will take it in consideration for future grant opportunities. Unfortunately, we cannot extend our deadline of January 31 at 5:30 p.m. because it would jeopardize our ability to start the grant program as scheduled on April 1. We hope that this will not be a barrier for qualified organizations to apply. As noted in Section 2.1 of the proposal, we are prioritizing applications from organizations with a demonstrated ability to serve African American and American Indian communities. We have committed to awarding at least one grant to an American Indian focused organization. In addition, if awarded, grantees will be able to use these funds for further planning, coordination, and community engagement.
Optional informational session
Slides: Informational Session for Harm Reduction, Health, and Housing Hubs RFP (PDF)
Jan. 11, 2024
Answers to questions asked during the informational session are included in the dropdown above.