[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 52 (Thursday, March 18, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13137-13138]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-5981]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Resources and Services Administration


Regional Collaborative for the Pacific Basin (RCPB) Cooperative 
Agreement

AGENCY: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), HHS.

ACTION: Notice of Non-competitive Supplemental Funding Award.

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SUMMARY: HRSA will be providing supplemental funds to support 
activities for a regional Pacific Primary Care Organization to 
represent the six U.S.-affiliated Pacific Basin jurisdictions. The 
supplemental funds will be used to augment the grantee's current 
activities to improve data strategies and address the health workforce 
needs in the region.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Intended recipient of the award: Research Corporation of the 
University of Hawaii Direct Project Pacific Islands Health Officers 
Association, Honolulu, Hawaii.
    Amount of the award: $150,000 to improve the public health data 
capacity and health workforce capacity for the Pacific Basin 
jurisdictions.

    Authority: Sections 241 and 301 of the Public Health Service 
Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 238J and 241 respectively); Title 3 
Section 330(k), 330(m), 333(d) of the Public Health Service Act, as 
amended (42 U.S.C. 254b and 254c respectively).

    CFDA Number: 93.110.
    Project period: The period of the supplemental support is from 
March 1, 2010 to August 31, 2010.

Justification for the Exception to Competition

    The public health data systems in the U.S.-affiliated Pacific 
Islands (USAPI) are inadequate as a result of poor infrastructure 
capacity. There is inconsistency in data collection and analysis among 
the jurisdictions. The result is that the prevalence of disease 
conditions in the USAPI is underestimated. In addition, the lack of 
data increases the communicable disease threats to USAPI populations 
and to the U.S. communities which experience high migration of 
residents from these jurisdictions. Furthermore, the current health 
workforce in the USAPI is impacted by chronic health worker shortages 
and under-training of its current workforce. The workforce problems are 
serious, chronic, and unique to insular areas which have fewer 
resources to address them. A Pacific PCO will provide regional

[[Page 13138]]

resources to ensure more effective health workforce planning, 
implementation and evaluation, and coordination between local and 
regional health and education sector. Further funding beyond August 31, 
2010, will be competitively awarded during the next competing 
application process for fiscal year 2010 for the Regional Collaborative 
for the Pacific Basin.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lynnette S. Araki, via e-mail 
[email protected], or via telephone: 301-443-6204.

    Dated: March 11, 2010.
Mary K. Wakefield,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2010-5981 Filed 3-17-10; 8:45 am]
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