Newly released statewide stroke-care grant. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) is accepting applications under HHS0017579 for the FY2027 Comprehensive Rehabilitation Services Mobile Stroke Unit (MSU) Program.
Funding: HHSC has $1,750,000 in total state funding available and intends to make multiple awards. The estimated maximum award is $1,750,000. No match is required. The anticipated project period is April 2027 through August 31, 2027, with HHSC able to extend an approved project up to one year.
Clarification window now closed: HHSC’s written-question deadline passed September 9, 2026 at 5:00 PM Central Time. The Applicant Conference stated that questions received after that deadline could not be responded to; HHSC has now posted Addendum 2 on September 11, 2026. HHSC has now posted Addendum 1, the Applicant Conference attachment, and Addendum 2 with an HHS response to questions. The conference materials direct all RFA communications to sole point of contact Marcellus Crayton at Marcellus.Crayton02@hhs.texas.gov, warn that communications with other HHS staff about the RFA are prohibited, and state that failure to comply may result in disqualification. Applicants should review Addendum 2 now, include every signed addendum in the application, and continue monitoring the official HHS Grants page for any later changes; all RFA communications remain restricted to the sole point of contact.
Application deadline: HHSC’s public resource page lists September 28, 2026 at 10:30 AM CDT. The Applicant Conference deck uses the broader wording Central Time in its schedule and also displays CST in some places. Atlas does not silently normalize that issuer-side inconsistency; applicants should follow the controlling HHS resource/portal clock and submit early. HHSC posted Addendum 2 with an HHS response on September 11, 2026, ahead of the tentative September 14 date shown in the original schedule.
Addendum control: the Applicant Conference materials state that applicants are responsible for all RFA requirements including addenda, that all addenda must be signed and submitted with the original application, and that applicants must check the HHS Grants website frequently for later addenda. As of September 11, the official resource page lists Addendum 1, its Applicant Conference attachment, Addendum 2, and the September 11 HHS response confirming that no federal funding is tied to this RFA. That response does not resolve the equipment-cost conflict below.
Who can apply: the applicant must hold a Texas Stroke Designation, be currently licensed in Texas to operate as a hospital, maintain required physician licensing and board certification, and hold qualifying CMS-approved healthcare accreditation. Existing contractors with current CRS MSU contracts are not eligible.
Eligible program model: applicants may propose a start-up MSU or expansion/maintenance of an existing qualifying MSU. The MSU must be a specialized ambulance equipped for stroke diagnosis and treatment, integrated into an EMS and trauma-care system, and include a neurologist either on board or available through a telemedicine medical service. Eligible services include stroke diagnosis, acute stroke treatment outside the hospital, medication treatment, neurological services and telemedicine.
Critical budget caution: the RFA requires the MSU to have a mobile CT scanner and other necessary medical equipment, but Section 5.3 separately prohibits grant funds from being used for Equipment and other capital expenditures. The newly posted Applicant Conference materials repeat that prohibition. Applicants should therefore treat major hardware, vehicle and capital acquisition as non-grant-funded unless HHSC issues a clarification or addendum. Because the September 9 question window has closed and the September 11 Addendum 2 response does not resolve equipment allowability, applicants whose project depends on a specific technology or equipment line item should avoid budgeting unresolved capital costs as grant-funded unless HHSC later issues controlling clarification. HHSC also limits personnel/salary reimbursement to no more than 10% of total FY2027 grant funding.
Submission architecture: HHSC permits either the HHS Online Bid Room or a sealed-package/USB submission. For the Online Bid Room, applicants must upload one complete “Original Application” PDF, the completed Form C Requested Budget Template in its original Excel format, and a Public Information Act copy if applicable. The RFA sets a 250 MB per-file limit. The alternative physical route requires separate USB drives and exact package labeling under Section 8.3; applicants using that route should build in delivery time because HHSC must receive the application by the deadline.
Disqualification controls: the submission checklist states that an application missing the completed and signed Exhibit A — HHS Solicitation Affirmations v2.10 or the completed Form C Budget Request Template will be disqualified. HHSC may decide whether other incomplete exhibits can be cured, but applicants should not rely on a cure opportunity. The application should be assembled in the required checklist order and include all applicable signed addenda.
Evaluation: qualified applications are scored 40% Organizational Information, 40% Technical Approach, and 20% Cost. HHSC may also consider geographic distribution, State priorities, reasonableness, available funding, cost-effectiveness, and other relevant factors in final selection.
Funding-source clarification: HHSC’s September 11 Addendum 2 response expressly states that there is no federal funding tied to this RFA. Applicants should describe the award as State-funded rather than as a federal pass-through.
Atlas Opportunity Score: 97/100. This is an exceptional Texas acute-care, mobile-health and telemedicine opportunity with a clear statewide service area, no match requirement, direct tele-neurology language and a substantial funding pool.
N9+ Fit: 45/100, conditional applicant-led only. An eligible Texas hospital must apply. N9+ could potentially support telemedicine-enabled assessment or specialist extension within the hospital-led MSU workflow, but it must not be represented as a substitute for the required CT/MSU equipment, and the RFA expressly prohibits grant-funded Equipment and other capital expenditures. The Nonagon N9+ device and platform must not be represented as automatically grant-fundable hardware. Applicant-specific classification and cost allowability must be verified before any budget claim. A narrower platform or services role within an eligible hospital-led telemedicine workflow may be possible, but it must not substitute for the required CT, MSU capability, or stroke and neurology personnel.
September 12, 2026 update: Addendum 2 confirms there is no federal funding tied to this RFA. The opportunity is state funded, and the existing no match rule remains. The controlling RFA also expressly prohibits grant funded Equipment and other capital expenditures. All issued addenda must be signed and returned with the application.
Official source: Texas HHS RFA HHS0017579.