Nursing Home Staffing Campaign
Closed Posted
- Opportunity number
- CMS-2V2-26-001
- Agency
-
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
Department of Health and Human Services
- Applications due
- Award size
- $1,760,000 to $20,000,000
Opportunity facts
- Assistance listings
- Funding instrument
- Cooperative Agreement
- Category
-
- Health
- Eligible applicants
-
- Non-501(c)(3) Nonprofits
- 501(c)(3) Nonprofits
- Higher Education Inst. (Public)
- Higher Education Inst. (Private)
- Points of contact
-
- Monica B. Anderson nhsc@cms.hhs.gov
Opportunity details come from Grants.gov. Updated .
About this opportunity
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is seeking nonprofit organizations and higher education institutions to serve as Financial Incentive Administrators (FIAs) that will recruit registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPNs) to work in nursing homes and state survey agencies through financial incentive programs. Eligible applicants must be 501(c)(3) nonprofits, non-501(c)(3) nonprofits, public higher education institutions, or private higher education institutions with demonstrated experience working with hundreds of nursing schools and thousands of nurses across multiple states. Key requirements include establishing recruitment infrastructure within six months, conducting an 18-21 month recruitment campaign targeting nursing homes in high nurse labor shortage areas, and verifying nurse licensure and employment fulfillment over a three-year period. Evaluation criteria include experience and competency (25 points), operational proposal (25 points), timeline and milestones (20 points), communications plan (10 points), and budget narrative with administrative costs not exceeding 15% of total funding (20 points). The application deadline is March 27, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, with an optional letter of intent due February 20, 2026, and an informational webinar scheduled for February 25, 2026.
CMS expects to award $80,000,000 in total funding across 5 to 10 cooperative agreements, with individual awards ranging from $1,760,000 to $20,000,000 per region over a five-year period of performance. Awards will be distributed across six geographic regions with no more than three awards per region, and funding will be allocated proportionally: 30% for LPNs, 50% for two-year RNs, and 20% for four-year RNs. Financial incentives provided to eligible nurses include up to $40,000 for student loan repayment and up to $10,000 in stipends for living expenses, distributed quarterly over three years to those working an average of at least 30 hours per week as direct employees. The expected award date is June 15, 2026, with a program start date of July 1, 2026. Performance will take place nationwide across all U.S. states, territories, and Washington D.C.
Synopsis
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is committed to improving safety and quality of care in the nation's nursing homes. Nursing home staffing is a critical factor for improving care for nursing home residents.
However, some nursing homes struggle to hire enough nursing staff to meet each resident's needs. Additionally, state survey agencies, which are responsible for inspecting nursing homes for compliance with federal regulations, have also had challenges hiring nurses to conduct these inspections. The Nursing Home Staffing Campaign (NHSC) is aimed at increasing the availability of nurses to work in the nursing home environment, such as in qualifying nursing homes or in an oversight capacity for a state inspection agency.
This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is focused on helping to recruit registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical nurses or licensed vocational nurses (LPNs) to work in nursing homes by offering financial incentives. Through this NOFO, CMS is accepting applications for cooperative agreements to entities that will administer financial incentives, such as loan repayment and stipends to RNs and LPNs, to work for three years in a qualifying nursing home or in an oversight role with a state agency.
Files
| File | Type | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| cms-2v2-26-001_rev2.pdf | ||
| cms-2v2-26-001_rev1.pdf |
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