135.195  Centers of excellence grant program.
  1.  The department shall administer a centers of excellence grant program to encourage innovation and collaboration among regional health care providers in rural areas, based upon the results of a regional community needs assessment, in order to transform health care delivery that provides quality, sustainable care in meeting the needs of the local community. 
  2.  There is appropriated from the general fund of the state to the department, beginning July 1, 2024, and for each subsequent fiscal year, the sum of four hundred twenty-five thousand dollars to award two program grants.
  3.  An applicant for a grant shall specify how the grant will be expended to accomplish the goals of the program and shall provide a detailed five-year sustainability plan prior to being awarded the grant. 
  4.  Following receipt of a grant, a recipient shall submit periodic reports as specified by the department to the governor and the general assembly regarding the recipient’s expenditure of the grant and progress in accomplishing the program’s goals. 
2024 Acts, ch 1157, §59
NEW section