Tennessee Rural Health Care Center of Excellence — Planning and Implementation Grants

The Tennessee Rural Health Care Center of Excellence (CoE), established at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), distributed planning and implementation grants to rural health organizations across Tennessee in its first solicitation round (November 2025 – January 15, 2026). The CoE is TDH's primary vehicle for competitive sub-grantee distribution in Year 1, funded by a $12 million sub-grant from TDH's RHTP allocation.

The solicitation accepted applications for two grant types: planning grants (up to $100,000 each, 12-month project period) for organizations developing a rural health project concept, and implementation grants (up to $500,000 each, up to 36 months) for implementation-ready organizations with defined projects. The two-tiered structure recognizes that rural organizations span a wide range of institutional capacity.

The January 15, 2026 full proposal deadline followed a November 14, 2025 Letter of Intent deadline and a December 5, 2025 invitation notification. Grant contracts are expected to begin April 1, 2026.

Eligible applicants as described in the solicitation include nonprofit organizations serving rural Tennessee, healthcare institutions (hospitals, CAHs, clinics) serving rural Tennessee, academic institutions with rural health programs in Tennessee, and community-based organizations (CBOs) serving rural Tennessee communities. Projects must serve rural Tennessee communities. For-profit entities are eligible according to UTHSC's published materials.

Indirect cost cap: 10% — a lower-than-standard cap that advantages organizations with lean administrative structures or those that operate under federally approved Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreements (NICRA) at or below 10%.

Tennessee has no federally recognized tribes. Tribal provisions are not applicable to this solicitation. Organizations serving Indigenous communities in Tennessee may qualify under community-based organization or nonprofit eligibility if their service area meets the rural geography requirement.