The Affordable Care Act mandates that hospitals conduct community health needs assessments to substantiate their nonprofit tax status. Grants are now available to support hospitals and their communities as they begin to implement strategies that emerged from the assessment process.

CEDIK, the Community and Economic Development Initiative of Kentucky, which resides in the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, and the Kentucky Office of Rural Health and the Kentucky Hospital Association anticipate funding three or four planning grants. The maximum planning grant will be $5,000. In addition, the organizations will support one to three implementation grants in future years, if funding permits.

Proposals will be accepted from rural health coalitions that include a rural hospital of fewer than 50 staffed beds. In addition to the hospital, coalitions must include at least two additional partners, such as the public health department, medical or dental care providers, the school system, public safety agencies, local government, nonprofit organizations or the business sector.

“After working with 30 hospitals around the state we saw wonderful new partnerships and a lot of synergy moving forward with the unified vision of improving health outcomes in their community,” said Alison Davis, CEDIK director. “We think this funding opportunity will continue that momentum and enable both new and old coalitions to position themselves for future funding opportunities.”

Grant applications are available online at http://cedik.ca.uky.edu/. Proposals are due by 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 30. Late entries will not be accepted. For questions regarding the Rural Community Grant Program, contact Marisa Aull, 859-257-7272, ext. 252 or marisa.aull@uky.edu.