Grants to local communities.

(a) deleted text begin Beginning July 1, 2009, deleted text end The commissioner of health shall award competitive grants to community health boards and tribal governments to convene, coordinate, and implement deleted text begin evidence-based deleted text end new text begin proven-effective new text end strategies deleted text begin targeted at reducing the percentage of Minnesotans who are obese or overweight and to reduce the use of tobacco deleted text end new text begin , promising practice strategies, or theory-based strategies that can be evaluated using experimental or quasi-experimental design new text end . Grants shall be awarded to all community health boards and tribal governments whose proposals demonstrate the ability to implement programs designed to achieve the purposes in subdivision 1 and other requirements of this section. new text begin In each grant cycle, the commissioner may award up to 100 percent of tribal grants and up to 25 percent of the grants awarded to community health boards to theory-based strategies that are culturally or ethnically focused. new text end

(b) Grantee activities shall:

(1) be based on scientific evidence;

(2) be based on community input;

(3) address behavior change at the individual, community, and systems levels;

(4) occur in community, school, work site, and health care settings;

(5) be focused on policy, systems, and environmental changes that support healthy behaviors; and

(6) address the health disparities and inequities that exist in the grantee's community.

(c) To receive a grant under this section, community health boards and tribal governments must submit proposals to the commissioner. A local match of ten percent of the total funding allocation is required. This local match may include funds donated by community partners.

(d) In order to receive a grant, community health boards and tribal governments must submit a health improvement plan to the commissioner of health for approval. The commissioner may require the plan to identify a community leadership team, community partners, and a community action plan that includes an assessment of area strengths and needs, proposed action strategies, technical assistance needs, and a staffing plan.

(e) The grant recipient must implement the health improvement plan, evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies, and modify or discontinue strategies found to be ineffective.

(f) Grant recipients shall report their activities and their progress toward the outcomes established under subdivision 2 to the commissioner in a format and at a time specified by the commissioner.

(h) deleted text begin Beginning November 1, 2015, the commissioner shall offer grant recipients the option of using a grant awarded under this subdivision to implement health improvement strategies that improve the health status, delay the expression of dementia, or slow the progression of dementia, for a targeted population at risk for dementia and shall award at least two of the grants awarded on November 1, 2015, for these purposes. The grants must meet all other requirements of this section. The commissioner shall coordinate grant planning activities with the commissioner of human services, the Minnesota Board on Aging, and community-based organizations with a focus on dementia. Each grant must include selected outcomes and evaluation measures related to the incidence or progression of dementia among the targeted population using the procedure described in subdivision 2. deleted text end new text begin For purposes of this subdivision, "proven-effective" means a strategy or practice that offers a high level of research on effectiveness for at least one outcome of interest; "promising practice" means a practice or activity that is supported by research demonstrating effectiveness for at least one outcome of interest; and "theory-based" means a strategy or activity that has no research on effectiveness but has a well-constructed logical model or theory of change. new text end

deleted text begin (i) Beginning July 1, 2017, the commissioner shall offer grant recipients the option of using a grant awarded under this subdivision to confront the opioid addiction and overdose epidemic, and shall award at least two of the grants awarded on or after July 1, 2017, for these purposes. The grants awarded under this paragraph must meet all other requirements of this section. The commissioner shall coordinate grant planning activities with the commissioner of human services. Each grant shall include selected outcomes and evaluation measures related to addressing the opioid epidemic. deleted text end