Asthma-Safe Homes Program Environmental Services Training Provider

The purpose of this request for applications is to seek a partner who can provide training and technical assistance on environmental home assessment, repair, and remediation of asthma trigger sources to organizations delivering the Wisconsin Department of Health Services’ (WI-DHS) Asthma-Safe Homes Program environmental services. This program is a Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Health Services Initiative (HSI) funded through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). The grant is expected to begin on October 1, 2026.

Through the HSI, WI-DHS has funding available to improve asthma outcomes and reduce disparities in asthma control for children ages 2-18 years old and pregnant individuals who are diagnosed with asthma and enrolled in Wisconsin BadgerCare Plus (Medicaid or CHIP). There are more than 500,000 children and adults who have asthma in Wisconsin, and asthma remains the most common chronic disease for children with a statewide prevalence of 8.4%.

Asthma disproportionately affects communities of color, with Black and Native American populations having 1.5-2 times the current prevalence as the White population (13% and 15%, respectively, versus 9%). These same populations also experience disparities in asthma control, with only 30% of non-White populations reporting well-controlled asthma compared to 64% of the White population. High rates of uncontrolled asthma result in even more disparate poor health care outcomes among communities of color. In Wisconsin, health care utilization for emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalizations among the Black population are 8 and 5 times higher, respectively, than among the White population; Native Americans have rates over twice that of the White population. Annual household income is another factor that contributes to asthma disparities, with the lowest income group (earning less than $15,000) having over twice the asthma prevalence of those in the highest income group (greater than $75,000).

Social determinants of health such as poor-quality housing, poverty, and other historical and structural factors are known contributors to the disparity in asthma outcomes. This HSI funding opportunity aims to reduce disparities in asthma control and improve asthma outcomes in Wisconsin by promoting access to guideline-based medical management of asthma and healthy living environments.

The target service area for the Asthma-Safe Homes Program includes Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, Rock, and Brown counties. These counties have among the highest rates of asthma , including some of the highest numbers of ED visits for asthma among children enrolled in Medicaid.

An eligible applicant must meet the following minimum requirements:

• Has experience providing in-depth training and technical assistance on guidelines-based environmental home assessment, repair, and remediation of common sources of asthma triggers
• Has own financial resources and capacity to provide services prior to invoicing for reimbursement

Applicants and their partners must have evidence of inclusivity and shall not discriminate based on race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status in any of its activities or operations.

The following information is required in the application submission:

• Contact and organization name and contact information
• Responses to questions for each selection criteria (see below)
• Supporting documents (uploaded), including:
  • Most recent financial statement to show available capital to finance operations
  • Resumes and certifications of key personnel

Applicants will be scored according to the points indicated for the review criteria below (totaling 100 points). Grant will be awarded to the application with the highest score.

Selection criteria 1: Applicant capacity and experience (50 points)

• Key personnel (15 points). Applicant describes the roles, qualifications, and certifications of each key personnel supporting the program, including person(s) responsible for providing program oversight, training and technical assistance, and financial management of the grant.
• Program administration and oversight (10 points). Applicant describes how they will provide program oversight to ensure grant objectives are met.
• Relevant experience (15 points). Applicant describes their experience providing training and technical assistance on environmental home assessment, repair, and remediation of asthma trigger sources, include the types of audiences they have trained.
• Health inclusion & community engagement (10 points). Applicant describes their organization’s history of and ability to provide training and technical assistance that supports authentic engagement and positively impacts members of the priority populations.

Selection criteria 2: Qualification Statement (50 points)

• Planned approach (20 points). Applicant describes a plan for how they will prepare to provide training and technical assistance, including how they will work with WI-DHS to understand program procedures and grantee training needs and adapt trainings as necessary.
• Training topics (20 points). Applicant describes their approach to and the core components/topics of training they plan to provide on environmental home assessment, repair, and remediation of asthma trigger sources.
• Technical assistance (10 points). Applicant describes their approach to providing ongoing technical assistance on environmental home assessment, repair, and remediation of asthma trigger sources.

DHS reserves the right to reject any and all applications. DHS may negotiate the terms of the grant agreement, including the award amount, with the selected applicant prior to entering into a grant agreement. If grant negotiations cannot be concluded successfully with a recommended applicant, DHS may terminate grant negotiations with that applicant.