Lyness: Grants Available to Address Local Health Challenges

Funding can be used to prevent or reduce mental and physical health issues for Hoosiers.

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INDIANAPOLIS - State Rep. Randy Lyness (R-West Harrison) said he is looking forward to local communities tackling health challenges like diabetes and obesity through a new state grant he helped create.

In 2021, Lyness supported a law creating the Indiana Health Issues and Challenges Grants, which will award $50 million to local and statewide service providers, and planning organizations to address longstanding problems. Now, the Indiana Department of Health is accepting grant applications, and Lyness said he hopes local providers like health departments, municipalities and nonprofit organizations apply.

"We must prioritize our health to keep our workforce, schools and communities thriving," Lyness said. "These grants are geared toward helping local organizations with programs that help individuals pursue a healthier lifestyle."

Funding can be used to prevent or reduce mental and physical health issues for Hoosiers, including in the areas of tobacco use, food insecurity, obesity, lead exposure, hepatitis C, and chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, asthma and cancer.

Applications for Indiana Health Issues and Challenges Grants are due by March 31, 2022, with award notices issued by the Indiana Department of Health by July 1, 2022.

For more information and to apply, Lyness encourages organizations to visit in.gov/health/grant-opportunities and click on "Health Issues and Challenges Grant."