SUD Withdrawal Management Treatment Bed Capacity Program FAQs

Entities must either currently meet or plan to meet with this funding the following requirements:

• Provide Inpatient Withdrawal Management Services in accordance with the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) criteria as described under Level 4.0 Medically Managed Intensive Inpatient Withdrawal Management Services (ASAM 4.0-WM);
• Increased number of ASAM Level 4.0 managed withdrawal treatment beds by more than one at the facility;
• Provide of services in New Hampshire (NH), in accordance with all applicable NH state rules and laws;
• Have or obtain required license(s) with the NH Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Health Facilities Administration for the facility;
• Accept NH Medicaid, Medicare, and private insurance (50% of the average annual payor mix for beds supported by this program must be Medicaid recipients); and
• Be one of the following:
  • For-Profit entity operating in good standing with the NH Secretary of State; or
  • Nonprofit private entity that is registered with the Department of Justice Charitable Trust Unit,

NOTE:  Entities are responsible for compliance with all applicable local, state, and federal  laws and regulations; including any NH DHHS licensure requirements.

Entities must also be registered with SAM.gov and have a Unique Entity ID (UEI) number before an award will be issued.

• At a minimum, entity must ADD ASAM Level 4.0 managed withdrawal treatment beds.
• Accept NH Medicaid, Medicare and private insurance (at least 50% of patients will be required to be on Medicaid).
  • Any beds funded by this program are subject to the requirement that at least 50% of the average annual payor mix must be Medicaid recipients.
• Project funds must be fully obligated by 09/30/2024 and must be completed by 12/31/2025.  Entities are required to provide a project timeline as part of supporting documentation for the application.

Eligible expenses include those for facility improvements, facility expansion, or new facilities (additional documentation required) designed to:

• Provide inpatient withdrawal management services in accordance with the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), ensure facilities are safe for residents and their families, and
• Help fund facility improvements.

Some examples of eligible expenditures for existing facilities include:

• Funding capital improvements,
• Building remodeling and construction,
• HVAC improvements, and
• Renovations to help update and modernize outdated capital equipment, facilities, and buildings.

Funding for this program is intended for the addition of ASAM Level 4.0 beds.  However, there may be an opportunity to expand the reach of this program to include funding for ASAM Level 3.7 beds as part of a larger project that otherwise satisfies program requirements. Any beds funded by this program are subject to the requirement that at least 50% of the average annual payor mix must be Medicaid recipients.

Note: Operational costs are not eligible, and U.S. Treasury defines capital expenditure in 2 CFR 200.13 and capital asset in 2 CFR 200.12, which GOFERR will use as guidance in determining eligible expenditures.

Federal regulations indicate a strong preference for improvements to existing facilities of this type.  As a result, the focus of this program is for projects or expenses for improvement to an existing facility or facilities.

However, constructing a wholly new building or facility may be eligible in some circumstances but will require further justification. See Question #9 for additional information.

Competitive grants will be awarded up to a maximum of $2,500,000 award per entity.

Applications will be reviewed and competitively scored, with criteria such as the following taken into consideration:  

• Merits of Proposal
• Financial Need
• Readiness
• Increase in the number of ASAM 4.0 managed withdrawal treatment beds
• Medicaid Acceptance and payor ratio
• Ability/capacity to address regional or statewide needs

Generally, receipt of other COVID-19 relief will not deem you ineligible to apply to this program.  

However, if your entity has received other aid for the same project costs for which you are seeking an award in this program, your application will be denied or award reduced.

To apply for this program, please visit the program page on GOFERR’s website by clicking here. That page will contain important program details, links to application materials, and instructions on how to submit your application.

You will need the contact and financial information relevant to your entity’s application, as well as information on your entity’s proposed, existing, or completed project(s).  

You will also be asked to attach to the application documentation on the proposed facility improvement(s). See below for more information on required documentation.

If you are applying for improvements to more than one facility, you will need to complete the application questions section for each facility that will be improved by a project.

If you require assistance submitting an application, please contact GOFERR at info@goferr.nh.gov.

• Documentation Supporting the Amount Claimed for Project Costs (Incurred and Estimated)
• Project Timeline (including milestones and completion date)
• Justification Analysis Required for Projects of $1 Million or More (if applicable - see explanation below)
• Justification Analysis Required for Projects Involving New Facilities (if applicable - see explanation below)

Entity may submit any additional documentation it feels supports their application.

Analysis for Projects with Costs of $1 Million or More: In addition to other application materials, a written justification for capital projects or expenditures with a total cost of $1 million or more must be provided and include:

• Comparison of the proposed capital project against at least two alternative types or sizes of capital expenditures that are potentially effective and reasonably feasible, and demonstration of why the proposed capital project is superior.
• Comparison of the proposal against the alternative of improving other existing capital assets already owned or leasing other capital assets, if applicable.
• To the extent possible, provide relevant data when making comparisons, and if data is not available, please explain why.  
• Important considerations:
  • The effectiveness of the capital expenditure in addressing the harm identified and the expected total cost (including pre-development costs) against at least the two alternative capital expenditures identified.
  • How the proposed capital project is a proportional response to the need you wish to address.

New Facility Analysis: If the capital project for which you are seeking expense reimbursement involves a new facility, additional details are needed. Please complete the below analysis and submit it as a separate document in conjunction with your application.

The federal government has stated that new congregate facilities are presumed ineligible. That presumption may be overcome by providing a written justification for a new congregate facility, as opposed to rehabilitation or remodeling of an existing facility. In order for a new facility to be considered, the applicant must provide the following in addition to other application materials:

• Explanation as to why the proposed new facility is a better and more suitable alternative to improving an existing facility already owned or leased.
  • Such an explanation should include how construction of the proposed new facility is a proportional response to the need you wish to address.

Note: This documentation and portions of the application that relate to explanation and justification for the project may be required to be provided to U.S. Treasury as part of federal reporting.

Applications for this program are due Wednesday, April 19, 2023 at 04:00PM.

GOFERR will review completed applications that contain all necessary support and documentation that are received by that date.

GOFERR recommends submitting completed applications promptly, as they may require follow up and additional documentation or information, and an incomplete application could impact award eligibility.  

This program permits awards for already completed projects, projects that are ongoing, or new projects.

Although award notices will be sent out by GOFERR, all awards will require an executed forgivable loan agreement, and those in excess of $10,000 will be subject to authorization by the Governor and Executive Council (G&C) at a scheduled meeting.

All awards are contingent on available authorized use of federal funds and this program will require funding reauthorization in order to provide funding beyond June 30, 2023.  GOFERR will submit such a reauthorization request.

Generally, the terms of the forgivable loan will provide principal funds for approved expenditures, at a 0% interest rate, and require the project to be completed by a set date and meet certain project and reporting requirements. Disbursement of funds under the forgivable loan on eligible expenses will be made either on a reimbursement basis or as part of a drawdown schedule, depending on the size and nature of the project.

Upon completion and satisfaction of the terms of the agreement, the loan will be forgiven. If the project is not completed or the agreement is otherwise violated, the entity will be required to pay back the entirety of the loan.  

All ARPA SFRF funds used on the project must be expended by September 30, 2024 and projects must be completed by December 31, 2025. In very limited circumstances, and on a project-by-project basis, GOFERR may have the ability to extend the deadline for completion.

IMPORTANT:  Your application must be completed and submitted in a single session.  You will NOT be able to save changes or return to edit or complete your application at a later date/time.
 
You should not submit your application until you are certain it is complete and you have the correct and necessary supporting documents. GOFERR may, but is not required to, request clarification if information provided is incomplete or missing.   

If you have not received notice of an award, you may file a corrected application if you become aware of an error.  Please notify GOFERR immediately if a second application is filed, as the original application may already be under review. The corrected application must contain all of the information that you want considered, even if it was otherwise correct in your earlier application, as GOFERR will not look to an earlier filed application for missing information.

GOFERR will assume that the application filed last in time is the most complete and will only process the last in time application (up until notice of an award/decision is sent by GOFERR).  

GOFERR will not add documents to a submitted application or change answers that you have already submitted.

GOFERR, as part of its outreach, may request any missing documentation. Additionally, GOFERR may request validation or clarification to answers already submitted which may result in supplementation of answers.
    
After award notices are issued in this program, they will be subject to approval by the Governor and Executive Council.

Appeals are permitted under the circumstances described below, and any appeals must be submitted within 15 business days of receiving a notice of award or denial.  

• Contesting eligibility:
  • Provide an explanation and evidence to substantiate your claim about why your facility is actually eligible for the program.
• Award determinations:
  • Provide an explanation and evidence supporting that the calculation of the award, based on the information submitted in the application, was in error.
• Application submission errors:
  • Only obvious typographical errors can be corrected, such as misplacing a decimal point or transposing digits.

Appeal requests and relevant evidence must be submitted in writing electronically to Appeals@goferr.nh.gov within 15 business days of the date a notice of award or denial was sent by GOFERR.  

The appeal will be determined based on the written submission and documents in GOFERR’s possession. No hearing will be held.

Applicants will receive a notice of the determination on the appeal. No further appeal is allowed.

For questions concerning the application, please contact info@goferr.nh.gov.

No. You may submit as many documents as are needed to support your application, but GOFERR recommends combining documents and using a PDF format to reduce the potential for errors or formatting issues.

If you for some reason encounter any issues, please contact info@goferr.nh.gov. 

Yes. If a business does not want this information to be made public, it should not submit a completed application.

If the project involves a new facility and the total project cost is $1 million or more, the written justifications may be required to be provided to U.S. Treasury as part of federal reporting requirements.

Treasury may make all or part of any such report available to the public.