A Strategic Approach to Advancing Health Equity for Priority Populations with or at Risk for Diabetes—Subject Matter Expertise, Training, and Technical Assistance | CDC RFA DP 23 0021

Opportunity Information: Apply for CDC RFA DP 23 0021

This CDC funding opportunity (CDC RFA DP 23 0021) is a cooperative agreement designed to strengthen the implementation of a separate, companion CDC program (CDC-RFA-DP23-2320) focused on diabetes prevention, diabetes management, and childhood obesity interventions as a strategy to reduce type 2 diabetes risk. Instead of directly delivering services to the public, the award supports a single national-level recipient that will function as a backbone support organization for the DP23-2320 recipients. The central aim is to build capacity so that the companion program recipients can deliver evidence-based interventions more equitably and effectively, especially for communities facing persistent, systemic barriers to health.

The equity focus is explicit and foundational. The work is meant to reduce health disparities and advance health equity for "priority populations," defined broadly as groups that have historically and systematically experienced greater obstacles to health due to factors linked to discrimination or exclusion. The NOFO lists examples such as race or ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic status, gender, age, mental health status, cognitive/sensory/physical disability, sexual orientation or gender identity, geographic location, and other historically marginalized characteristics. In practice, this means the supported training, tools, and expertise should help recipients adapt and deliver diabetes-related programs in ways that are accessible, culturally responsive, and designed to overcome real-world barriers like cost, transportation, language access, digital access, and other social determinants of health.

The companion NOFO that this award supports has three major programmatic goals: preventing or delaying type 2 diabetes among adults with prediabetes, improving diabetes self-care and quality of care while promoting early detection of complications among people with diabetes, and implementing evidence-based, family-centered childhood obesity interventions to reduce type 2 diabetes risk in youth. This NOFO exists to make those goals achievable at scale by ensuring recipients have the specialized knowledge, operational tools, and hands-on assistance needed to implement and sustain those interventions, particularly in settings serving priority populations.

Applicants are expected to deliver support through three linked strategies. Strategy 1 centers on obtaining and providing subject matter expertise via a network of sustainable partnerships and experts. The intent is that the awardee acts as a connector and provider of specialized guidance across the full range of diabetes prevention and management topics that the companion recipients must tackle. The expertise areas called out are extensive and include Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support (DSMES), with emphasis on boosting engagement, enrollment, and retention of priority populations; helping programs secure Medicaid and employer coverage for DSMES; supporting achievement and maintenance of American Diabetes Association recognition or Association of Diabetes Care and Education Specialists accreditation; and strengthening long-term sustainability through billing and reimbursement. It also includes National Diabetes Prevention Program (National DPP) expertise, again emphasizing enrollment and retention of priority populations, coverage and reimbursement (Medicaid and employer benefits), and sustainability mechanisms like billing and umbrella hub arrangements, plus lifestyle coach development.

Strategy 1 also requires expertise related to youth-focused type 2 diabetes risk reduction through implementation support for four named evidence-based, family-centered childhood obesity interventions: MEND (Mind, Exercise, Nutrition...Do It), Family Based Behavioral Therapy, Bright Bodies, and Healthy Weight and Your Child. Beyond program delivery, the NOFO highlights clinical quality improvement for people with diabetes, including working with health systems to strengthen team-based care; promote clinical quality measures; and optimize clinical decision support, electronic health records, and telehealth. It places particular emphasis on early detection of complications, specifically chronic kidney disease and diabetic retinopathy, signaling a strong interest in aligning prevention and management efforts with measurable improvements in clinical outcomes and screening practices.

Additional Strategy 1 expertise areas reflect the CDC's push for integrated, sustainable systems rather than isolated programs. The NOFO calls for pharmacy-focused support, including partnerships with pharmacy networks (such as CPESN and state pharmacy associations) and chain pharmacies to expand and sustain pharmacy-based DSMES and National DPP sites, improve billing processes, and implement electronic systems that allow information sharing with primary care. A related emphasis is bidirectional e-referral, meaning electronic referral systems that enable two-way exchange of information between clinical providers and community programs to increase participation in DSMES and the National DPP lifestyle intervention and to close the loop on referrals. The NOFO also encourages innovative service delivery and payment models that bundle DSMES and/or the National DPP with services that address social determinants of health barriers. It specifically names community health worker infrastructure as a priority, with a focus on building the financing and operational systems needed for long-term CHW involvement in evidence-based diabetes programs. It also highlights multisectoral partnerships, expecting coordination among payers, community-based organizations, CDC-recognized delivery organizations, health care organizations, and others to drive aligned action toward common goals. Finally, it explicitly includes technical writing and editing capacity, indicating the awardee must be able to translate complex program work into clear, accurate guidance and products appropriate for recipient audiences and CDC.

Strategy 2 focuses on training and technical assistance. In consultation with CDC, the awardee must quickly assess the companion recipients to identify training and TA needs, then develop a structured training and TA plan that includes peer learning. The NOFO expects the awardee to create communities of practice or learning collaboratives where recipients can share tools, troubleshoot implementation challenges, and spread effective approaches. The awardee is also responsible for developing and delivering trainings and TA, promoting participation, facilitating sessions, and evaluating whether the training and peer learning activities are being delivered effectively and meeting recipients' needs. This evaluation component matters because the CDC is signaling that TA should be measurable and continuously improved, not just offered.

Strategy 3 centers on creating practical guidance documents and resources that recipients can use to implement the companion NOFO strategies with consistency and quality. This includes producing technically accurate guidance tailored to the work recipients must perform, building a standard interactive orientation package for onboarding new recipient staff, and developing communication and dissemination products that help demonstrate the value and impact of recipient activities. Examples listed include success stories, lessons learned, impact briefs, reports, newsletters, and web content. The NOFO also expects the awardee to create materials that support evaluation and documentation of promising practices, such as case studies and emerging practice examples, which helps the CDC and recipients identify what is working, in what contexts, and for which populations.

From an applicant standpoint, the CDC is looking for an organization that can credibly assemble and manage a broad expert network and translate that expertise into usable support for multiple jurisdictions and organizations funded under the companion NOFO. Applicants must describe their approach for all three strategies and document the qualifications, experience, and capacity of both the lead organization and each proposed expert or partner. This is structured as a cooperative agreement, which typically means substantial federal involvement in shaping direction, priorities, and deliverables over the project period, and the NOFO repeatedly notes that work will be done in consultation with CDC.

In terms of logistics and award profile, this is a discretionary CDC opportunity in the health activity category (CFDA 93.988) with a very large anticipated maximum award size (award ceiling listed as $10,000,000) and an expected number of awards of one, indicating a single entity will likely be selected to provide national coordination and support. Eligibility is broad and includes government entities, higher education institutions, tribal governments and tribal organizations, public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, nonprofits (including both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)), for-profit organizations (including small businesses), and other eligible entities as described in the announcement. The opportunity was posted in January 2023 with an original application deadline in March 2023, and applications were to be submitted electronically by 11:59 pm ET on the due date.

Overall, the opportunity is best understood as an infrastructure and capacity-building grant: it funds the expert support system that helps other funded recipients succeed in delivering equitable diabetes prevention and management interventions. The deliverables are not only technical guidance and training, but also the partnerships, referral and payment model know-how, sustainability supports, and documentation resources needed to make evidence-based diabetes programs accessible, scalable, and durable in the communities that have historically been least well served.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control - NCCDPHP in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "A Strategic Approach to Advancing Health Equity for Priority Populations with or at Risk for Diabetes—Subject Matter Expertise, Training, and Technical Assistance" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.988.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jan 13, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Mar 14, 2023 Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 1159 pm ET on the listed application due date.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $10,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

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