Regional Support Centers for the CYSHCN Program

Pursuant to New York State Finance Law § 163.10(b), The New York State Department of Health is presenting the following summary of relevant circumstances, and material and substantial reasons why a competitive procurement was not feasible. The New York State Department of Health Regional Support Centers for the CYSHCN Program has made a determination to issue a Single Source Procurement to three eligible grantees to support ongoing currently funded projects.

The New York State Department of Health (Department) Division of Family Health Bureau of Child Health (BCH) requested a waiver from competitive bidding requirements to establish three single source grant contracts with the state’s University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDDs) to provide technical assistance and training services to support the local health departments (LHDs), which have contracts from the Department to support families and caregivers of children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN).

The Department receives a block grant from the federal Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) for Maternal and Child Health services, and 30% of the grant must be allocated to support CYSHCN. In NYS, it is estimated that 18% of children (920,000) from birth to 21 are identified as CYSHCN. The range of conditions and health needs is large and varied. Only 11% of caregivers of CYSHCN in NYS reported that their CYSHCN received care in a well-functioning system.

Currently, the Department has contracts with Local Health Departments (LHDs) to provide information and referrals to families with CYSHCN. From December 2016 through June 2018, BCH completed a care mapping initiative with families and providers to gather feedback about strengths, gaps, and barriers to care for CYSHCN. LHDs provided feedback that they do not have sufficient expertise or resources to search for and become knowledgeable about the myriad of health conditions and resources available for families with CYSHCN. LHDs would like to have a reliable source of information and system of supports to help them help their families with CYSHCN. The LHDs would also benefit from professional development and coaching in order to enhance their support for families of CYSHCN. Caregivers who participated in the care mapping activity said they spent hours searching for information and resources for their children and would find it extremely beneficial to have a single place they can go for reliable information. Families are often unaware of the services offered through their LHDs. Based on their feedback, the LHDs need help assessing their local resources and engaging families in the community, so families with CYSHCN see them as a resource.

Contracting with the three UCEDDs will provide technical assistance, training, mentorship and coaching to improve LHDs’ ability to support families with CYSHCN and will allow for engagement with families with CYSHCN to continue to assess and support their needs. The three UCEDDs are geographically distributed to provide support statewide. The three UCEDDs are uniquely qualified for this work and can leverage their current expertise and relationship with LHDs to provide the necessary technical assistance and support to the LHDs as well as direct engagement of families.

The funding has been included in the Maternal Child Health Services Block Grant (MCHSBG) budget in FFY 18-19 and FFY 19-20 and must be expended by September 30, 2021. There is insufficient time to develop, release and score a competitive RFP; execute a contract; and complete the activities that have been identified as needed to support CYSHCN and their families.

For more information about the Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs Program, go to Regional Support Centers (RSCs) for the Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN) Program

Procurement / Program Name	Regional Support Centers for the CYSHCN Program
Contractor Name(s)	Multiple Contractors - See attached List
Contract Period	10/1/2019 – 9/30/2021
Contract Number(s)	Various Contract Numbers - See attached List