Rural Communities Opioid Response Program – Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health

The Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) is a multi-year Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) initiative aimed at reducing the morbidity and mortality of substance use disorder (SUD), including opioid use disorder (OUD), in high-risk rural communities. This notice announces the opportunity to apply for funding under the RCORP-Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health (RCORP-CABH) program. The purpose of RCORP-CABH is to establish and expand sustainable behavioral health care services for children and adolescents aged 5-17 years who live in rural communities, and to prevent substance misuse. For the purposes of RCORP-CABH, “behavioral health” encompasses services to address both mental health and substance use disorders. Over the four-year period of performance, award recipients will use RCORP-CABH funding to achieve the following three program goals through a consortium-based approach1: Goal 1: Service Delivery. Establish new behavioral health prevention, treatment, and recovery services for children and adolescents aged 5-17 years in the target rural service area. Goal 2: Training and Peer Mentorship. Improve the capacity of rural health care providers, paraprofessionals, non-clinical staff, and community members to care for and support children and adolescents aged 5-17 with behavioral health needs, through providing training and peer mentorship opportunities. Goal 3: Community Partnerships. Build community partnerships to ensure that children and adolescents, and their families, have access to community resources and human services that support prevention of, treatment of, and recovery from behavioral health disorders. As a result of these goals, HRSA expects that an increased number of children and adolescents aged 5-17 will receive evidence-based, coordinated behavioral health care and supportive services. Additionally, HRSA expects that all activities implemented under RCORP-CABH will be sustainable by the end of the four-year period of performance. The target population for RCORP-CABH is: • Children and adolescents ages 5-17 in HRSA-designated rural counties and rural census tracts who are at risk for, have, or are recovering from a behavioral health disorder; • The families and caretakers of children and adolescents ages 5-17 in HRSA-designated rural counties and rural census tracts who are at risk for, have, or are recovering from a behavioral health disorder. HRSA encourages you to include populations that have historically suffered from poorer health outcomes, health disparities, and other inequities as compared to the rest of the population. Examples of these populations include, but are not limited to racial and ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ individuals, socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, new immigrants, people who are homeless, and individuals with disabilities. Additionally, HRSA expects applicants to ensure that all activities supported by RCORP-CABH are culturally and linguistically appropriate for the target rural population that will be served.