QA Summary RFA 202603044 (Districts 6 7) toDAFS.xlsx

This is a Questions and Answers (QA) summary document for Request for Applications (RFA) #202603044 issued by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services for Rural Regional Planning for Perinatal Care in Public Health Districts 6 and 7. The RFA seeks qualified organizations to establish and lead Rural Planning Groups focused on expanding access to perinatal care services in specified Maine counties over a two-year contract period running from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2028. Key deliverables include a regional inventory of perinatal services (due within three months), identification of regional goals (eight months), completion of a SWOT analysis (twelve months), and development of a regional continuity of care model (eighteen months). Organizations must facilitate a minimum of four in-person regional planning sessions, conduct on-site visits to perinatal care facilities, and submit quarterly progress reports. Applications must be submitted through the Vendor Self Service System by April 17, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. local time, with questions due by April 3, 2026. The Department anticipates making two awards, one for each district, with funding not to exceed $60,000 per application.

The QA summary addresses three critical clarifications regarding allowable expenses and meeting formats. First, it clarifies that while organizations cannot waive or reduce federally negotiated indirect cost rates as cost-share, they may use unrestricted funds to cover indirect costs to maximize federal funding for program activities. Second, the summary confirms that hybrid meeting formats are acceptable if they include in-person events in each county, with at least two in-person meetings occurring in each county for a total of four in-person sessions. Third, it explicitly confirms that indirect costs are allowable expenses under the RFA, consistent with the CMS-2N2-25-001 Transforming Maternal Health (TMaH) Model Grant Funding Opportunity, with the Department working with awarded applicants to ensure compliance with NOFO requirements. Allowable costs include Rural Planning Group participant compensation, facilitator payments, data analysis and personnel time, meeting expenses, regional lead and administrative support staffing, and support for the Family Leadership Development process.