Rural Emergency Medical Communications Demonstration Project (REMCDP)
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) supports and promotes communications capabilities used by emergency responders and government officials across the country. In its efforts to advance interoperability, CISA develops the National Emergency Communications Plan (NECP), which is the nation's strategic plan that establishes goals, objectives, and actions to enhance and improve interoperable and operable emergency communications. The NECP recommends improved planning and coordination across the Emergency Communications Ecosystem, including emergency medical personnel within the whole community.
To aid in NECP implementation, Congress authorized CISA to establish the Rural Emergency Medical Communications Demonstration Project (REMCDP) that leverages existing technologies and engages non-medical professionals to help establish or sustain statewide medical communications systems and use existing infrastructure to improve the delivery of rural medical care.
Previous REMCDP Recipients
CISA published the FY 2024 REMCDP Notice of Funding Opportunity (.pdf, 417.74 KB), which was available on grants.gov from June 18 to August 9, 2024. Following a competitive selection process, CISA awarded a cooperative agreement of $1,000,000 to the Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency. In addition, CISA leverages some REMCDP funds for technical assistance services to assist rural communities across the nation.
The FY 2023 REMCDP Notice of Funding Opportunity was posted on grants.gov from May 30 through July 28, 2023. REMCDP’s program objectives remained consistent with previous awards; however, eligibility was expanded to include, state, local, tribal, and territorial government agencies in collaboration with a medical facility, as well as public and state-controlled institutions of higher education. Following a competitive selection process, CISA awarded cooperative agreements of $4,276,023 across three communities in Colorado, Iowa, and Virginia. Recipients have a 2-year period of performance to complete their demonstration projects in collaboration with the federal government. CISA also provided technical assistance support to 24 sites across 17 states and 2 tribal nations.
In recognition of the ongoing need for innovative solutions to improve the delivery of rural medical care and address NECP implementation gaps, Congress authorized a fourth round of REMCDP funding in 2022. Following a competitive selection process, CISA awarded $1,892,500 to the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) to build on the success of its previous REMCDP awards, as well as explore additional technologies, including push-to-talk over cellular. UMMC was selected for REMCDP competitive grants in 2016, 2018, and 2020 to develop its First Hands Program, which combined medical and land mobile communications education with hands-on exercises to empower first responders providing medical aid in rural communities. See the FY 2016–2022 REMCDP Fact Sheet (.pdf, 369.94 KB) for more information.
REMCDP Resources
The following materials provide information about REMCDP federal funding and technical assistance as authorized by Congress.
FY 2023 REMCDP Fact Sheet
This fact sheet summarizes REMCDP cooperative agreement awards and technical assistance offerings from FY 2023.
FY 2016–2022 REMCDP Fact Sheet (Published March 2024)
This fact sheet summarizes REMCDP awards and accomplishments from FY 2016–2022.
FY 2024 REMCDP Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)
This funding opportunity for a competitive cooperative agreement was available on grants.gov from June 18 to August 9, 2024
Contact Us
For additional questions about the REMCDP program, please contact Emergency-Comms-Grants@cisa.dhs.gov.