HHS recently announced over $390 million in federal funding for the Hospital Preparedness Program. This is federal funding that passes through state health departments to health care providers. Fiscal year 2010 is the first year that the federal government is requiring a 10% match on federal funds. In other words, states and local providers must commit at least $1 for every $10 in federal contributions.

If you are paying close attention to the health care funding landscape, a new phrase and abbreviation has entered the grants lexicon. Many opportunities being released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) are being prefaced with "Affordable Care Act" or "ACA". Apparently, this is the consensus designation for grants authorized through the health reform legislation, or the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that was signed into law on March 23, 2010. The ACA has authorized several grant programs over the next decade to address workforce development and professional shortages in the health arena, improve health care quality overall, and fund the deployment of comprehensive care management delivery models.