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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announces grant recipients
September 28, 2010

The departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture this past week announced the recipients of a combined $46 million in discretionary grants designed to encourage healthier lifestyles and increase low-income families' access to nutritious food. Much of that funding derives from President Obama's landmark health care reform legislation enacted this spring.

Last year's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act provided $650 million in total funding for a new grant program to combat chronic health problems such as obesity and heart disease by encouraging low-income communities to exercise more, eat better and avoid using tobacco. Administered by HHS, the Communities Putting Prevention to Work program (CPPW) has already distributed more than half of that funding allocation to state and local government agencies and private nonprofit groups to support a wide array of educational programs aimed at fostering healthier lifestyle choices.

Last week, HHS announced the latest installment of CPPW funding, with $31 million in new awards made to 11 grantees to further the program’s goals. Those funding decisions follow the $372.8 million the agency awarded in cooperative agreements in March, which supported 44 grantees drawn from an applicant pool of 263 state and local governments. HHS also announced that six of those original grantees will share an additional $10 million to act as mentors to less-experienced communities seeking to establish their own health and wellness initiatives.

There may be opportunities for public broadcasters to form partnerships with grantees, so be sure to view the lists above and reach out to your local and state departments of health.