The purpose of the Request for Applications (RFA) was to solicit applications from organizations to increase access to perinatal health hubs in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The applications for this round of funding were due on December 1st, 2025.
The purpose of the program is to establish and/or expand perinatal health hub pilot sites. Organizations will use funds to implement one of the following:
- Category 1: Design and implement a new perinatal health hub (category 1 – new organizations or existing organizations that may have previously served the perinatal population in some capacity, but are interested in shifting their efforts to focus on a hub for this population)
- Category 2: Expand and improve an existing perinatal health hub (category 2 – established organizations looking to expand)
- Category 3: Establish or improve upon a collaborative perinatal health hub, whereby multiple organizations are formally working together to provide wrap-around services (category 3 – collaborative models where organizations work in partnership with other hubs/agencies to provide an array of perinatal services)
For the purpose of this application, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) defines “perinatal health hub” as the following*:
A perinatal health hub serves as a community-based, multidisciplinary care model that values and prioritizes perinatal health outcomes related to a reduction in maternal and infant mortality and morbidity. These spaces are dedicated to delivering a spectrum of comprehensive culturally responsive perinatal support services from trusted community providers (they provide more than one service). Hubs provide care for the mother-baby dyad during the period before, during, and at least up to one year following pregnancy. These hubs provide vital support to the community, perinatal health providers, and hospital systems through their access to a diverse workforce collaborating to improve outcomes via coordinated wraparound care (e.g. doulas, Community Health Workers (CHWs), peer support specialists, birth workers, and other perinatal specialists). A perinatal health hub can come in a variety of forms that is tailored to the unique needs of the community it serves.
*Chapter 654 of the 2023 Virginia Acts of Assembly required VDH to convene a stakeholder workgroup to, “evaluate strategies to reduce maternal and infant mortality rates and make recommendations to enhance maternal health and public health support systems through expansion of the perinatal health hub model.” The workgroup developed this definition of a perinatal health hub by consensus, and VDH is adopting this definition at their recommendation. VDH made one change to clarify that hubs should provide care for the “mother-baby dyad.”
Funding for this RFA is provided through: State General Funds allocated per Chapter 725 of the 2025 Virginia Acts of Assembly (Budget Bill, Item #277H). Chapter 725 of the 2025 Virginia Acts of Assembly (Budget Bill) established the Perinatal Health Hubs Pilot Program. The budget allocates $2,500,000 in FY26 from the general fund to support this program. The budget specifies that the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) shall provide awards for a two-year grant period for community-based providers (hubs) to improve perinatal outcomes and to reduce maternal and infant mortality in their communities. The language specifies that VDH, in collaboration with the Virginia Neonatal Perinatal Collaborative and in consultation with the Department of Medical Assistance Services, shall establish grant selection and award criteria. The budget language specifies elements of the selection and award criteria. The budget language also requires VDH to submit a report on the pilot program by June 30, 2026. Finally, the budget language allows any unspent funds in SFY26 to be carried forward and reappropriated to the program.