Lifespan Respite Care Program: Grants to New States and States Re-Establishing Their Core Respite Infrastructures | HHS 2024 ACL AOA LRLR 0020

Opportunity Information: Apply for HHS 2024 ACL AOA LRLR 0020

The Administration for Community Living (ACL) is offering the Lifespan Respite Care Program: Grants to New States and States Re-Establishing Their Core Respite Infrastructures (Funding Opportunity Number HHS-2024-ACL-AOA-LRLR-0020). This is a discretionary funding opportunity that will be awarded as cooperative agreements, meaning funded states will carry out their projects in close coordination with ACL. The goal is to help states build or rebuild coordinated, statewide lifespan respite care systems and deliver respite and related supports for family caregivers who are caring for children or adults with disabilities, chronic conditions, or other needs, without limiting services to any single age group or diagnosis.

ACL is specifically looking for applications from states that fall into one of two categories. The first category is new states that have never received a Lifespan Respite Program grant before. The second category is returning states that previously held at least one Lifespan Respite grant, but whose program activity has gone dormant or lapsed after federal funding ended, and that now want to re-establish the core components of their statewide respite infrastructure (rather than applying under a program enhancement track). From the start of the project, applicants must design their approach to serve caregivers across the full lifespan and across all populations, regardless of the care recipient's age, disability type, or chronic condition.

ACL expects to make two awards total, each supporting a 3-year project period, with an award ceiling of $250,000. Over the life of the grant, states are expected not only to strengthen the statewide infrastructure for respite, but also to deliver direct respite services. In particular, ACL indicates that by the second and third years of the project, grantees should be providing respite services while still expanding and improving the statewide system that makes respite easier to find, access, and sustain.

Grant-funded activities are intended to cover both system-building and service expansion. Examples highlighted in the announcement include developing new and emergency respite service activities, recruiting and training respite workers and volunteers, helping caregivers navigate and access appropriate respite options, and continuing or expanding targeted outreach to underserved populations across the lifespan. The opportunity also references that other authorized services may be supported as permitted under the Lifespan Respite Care Program statute and its reauthorization.

Eligibility is limited to state governments, and awards may only be made to eligible state agencies tied to specific statutory authorities. Under the Lifespan Respite Care Program (authorized in 2006 under Title XXIX of the Public Health Service Act and updated through the Lifespan Respite Care Reauthorization Act of 2020), the applicant must be the state agency administering the state's program under the Older Americans Act of 1965 or Title XIX of the Social Security Act (Medicaid), or another state agency formally designated by the Governor to administer the program under this title. The eligible state agency must also be an Aging and Disability Resource Center (ADRC) and must work in collaboration with a public or private nonprofit statewide respite care coalition or organization, reinforcing that this is meant to be a coordinated, statewide effort rather than a stand-alone program.

A key expectation of the award is participation in federal data and reporting requirements. Awardees will work with ACL to implement data collection and reporting required under Section 2904 of the Lifespan Respite Reauthorization Act of 2020, which underscores the program's focus on measurable outcomes and consistent reporting across states. Foreign entities are explicitly not eligible to apply for or receive awards under this announcement.

The application closing date for this opportunity was June 11, 2024, and the opportunity is listed under Assistance Listing (CFDA) number 93.072 within the broad funding activity category of Income Security and Social Services.

• The Administration for Community Living in the income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Lifespan Respite Care Program: Grants to New States and States Re-Establishing Their Core Respite Infrastructures" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.072.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-04-12.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-06-11. (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 $250,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments.

Apply for HHS 2024 ACL AOA LRLR 0020

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