Rural Emergency Medical Communications Demonstration Project

For programmatic or technical questions:
Elizabeth (Bess) Mitchell
703.705.6318
OECgrants@hq.dhs.gov

For financial or regulatory questions:
Marsha Mathis
202.447.5950
Marsha.mathis@hq.dhs.gov

The Rural Emergency Medical Communications Demonstration Project (REMCDP) will provide funding to public or state controlled institutions of higher education for demonstration projects addressing rural emergency medical communications. The project's intent is to examine communication barriers and identify solutions that enhance existing emergency communications infrastructure, which will then inform planning and coordination of emergency response across multiple jurisdictions in rural areas to support the Department of Homeland Security's National Emergency Communications Plan (NECP).

Applicants should demonstrate how the proposed project will address the following REMCDP objectives:

• Use of a current statewide emergency communications system to deliver rural medical care and services
• Development of trainings and exercises to ensure that rural emergency responders and personnel can use emergency medical communications systems and equipment effectively
• Collaboration with state leaders to address the adoption of broadband communications to supplement current land mobile radio and statewide emergency communications systems
• Collaboration with non-medical professionals and emergency communications stakeholders that use emergency medical communications
• Solutions to ensure that emergency responders and medical practitioners can communicate in rural, underserved communities, as needed and when authorized
• Development of concepts for inclusion of rural medical care and emergency communications support as a component of the NECP
• Identify, document, and share lessons learned and best practices of the demonstration project, which in turn could be shared with other stakeholders addressing rural population healthcare needs, such as high cardiovascular diseases and/or high mortality rates

Applicants must be public or state controlled institutions of higher education that operate or have access to an existing statewide emergency communications system that is leveraged to address rural health disparities. The applicant must also be an emergency communications center.

Award ceiling: $4,000,000
Project period: 24 months
Estimated number of awards: 2
Estimated total program funding: $4,000,000

Links to the full announcement and the online application process are available through grants.gov. The application instructions will be found on the related documents tab and on the program website.