Opportunity Overview
The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), through Texas Health and Human Services procurement, released RFA HHS0016842 on August 31, 2026 to expand Community-Based Care into DFPS Catchment Areas 7A and 7B. DFPS is seeking one or more Single Source Continuum Contractors (SSCCs) to manage a performance-based continuum of foster and kinship care, purchased services, case management, reunification support and related child-welfare services.
The opportunity is important to Atlas because the selected SSCC must coordinate the health and behavioral-health needs of children in foster care as part of a much broader child-welfare operating model, including required medical, dental and Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment (EPSDT) follow-up.
Deadline and Contract Structure
Applications are due September 29, 2026 at 10:30 AM Central Time. The optional applicant conference was held September 3, and the written-question deadline passed September 7, 2026 at 5:00 PM Central Time. DFPS tentatively expects to post answers on September 21, 2026. Applicants should monitor the official HHS0016842 page and ESBD for Q&A, addenda, and schedule changes before final submission.
DFPS expects to award one contract for each designated catchment area or one contract covering both areas, depending on applications, funding and best value to the State. The main RFA does not publish one universal award amount or ceiling; estimated funding is contained in Exhibits C-1 through C-3, the catchment-area Funding Matrices. The initial contract term is 60 months, with a possible additional 60-month renewal at DFPS’s discretion. The anticipated contract start date is March 2027.
Eligible Geography
Region 7A Central Texas/Waco includes Bell, Bosque, Brazos, Coryell, Falls, Freestone, Grimes, Hamilton, Hill, Lampasas, Leon, Limestone, Llano, Madison, McLennan, Milam, Mills, Robertson, San Saba and Williamson counties.
Region 7B Capital Area includes Bastrop, Blanco, Burleson, Burnet, Caldwell, Fayette, Hays, Lee, Travis and Washington counties. Applicants may propose Region 7A, Region 7B, or a single application covering all of Region 7, and may propose certain contiguous additional Texas counties not already under an SSCC contract.
Who Can Apply
The SSCC must be either a nonprofit entity with an organizational mission focused on child welfare or a governmental entity. It must have experience delivering residential child-care and treatment services to children and youth in foster care. An applicant may be a single entity or may submit through a consortium of providers, but one provider must serve as the lead and contract directly with DFPS.
An in-state or out-of-state organization may apply, but the majority of its board members must reside in Texas. DFPS will also consider the applicant’s experience serving children, youth and families in the proposed community.
Healthcare and Behavioral-Health Relevance
The SSCC must build and manage the provider network and case-management infrastructure necessary to serve children and families throughout the designated area. The RFA requires applicants to explain how children in paid foster care will receive required follow-up medical exams, EPSDT services, Early Childhood Intervention referrals and dental exams within STAR Health and DFPS policy timeframes. Children age three and older must also have needs assessed using the current CANS assessment.
This makes the opportunity highly relevant to pediatric, behavioral-health, care-coordination and community-provider networks, even though the direct applicant must be a qualified child-welfare nonprofit or governmental entity rather than a healthcare vendor.
Atlas Analysis
Atlas Opportunity Score: 92/100. HHS0016842 is a major multi-year Texas child-welfare and pediatric-care coordination opportunity covering 30 named counties, with a possible contract covering all of Region 7 and an initial five-year term. The strongest applicants will already have substantial foster-care residential/treatment experience, community-provider relationships, case-management infrastructure and the financial and operational capacity to assume a regional continuum of care. The applicant conference and written-question period are complete; applicants should now monitor the tentative September 21 Q&A posting and all addenda, then carry those controlling changes into the final response.
N9+ Direct Vendor Fit: 10/100. The RFA clearly requires coordination of medical, dental, EPSDT and behavioral-health needs, but it does not establish a direct clinical-technology, telehealth or remote-exam procurement pathway. Dr. Miltie should not be positioned as a direct applicant. A downstream role should be considered only if a qualified SSCC includes a verified, allowable pediatric-access or provider-network technology component in its approved model.
Next Action
Qualified nonprofit or governmental child-welfare organizations should select the desired catchment configuration; review the applicable C-1 through C-3 Funding Matrix; confirm the required residential child-care and treatment experience; define the SSCC consortium/provider network; and build the implementation, health-service coordination, case-management and fiscal model. The written-question period is closed. Monitor the official HHS0016842 page for the anticipated September 21 Q&A and all addenda, sign and return each posted addendum, and submit the complete application so HHSC receives it by September 29, 2026 at 10:30 AM Central Time.
Official source: Texas HHS RFA HHS0016842.