MSWISEWOMAN Program Provider Fee For Service Contract

Released: June 5, 2026 12:00 AM CDT Questions due (Question Submission Deadline): June 19, 2026 12:00 AM CDT Responses due (Application Due Date): March 31, 2027 12:00 AM CDT

Mississippi Healthcare providers who are enrolled in the MS-Breast and Cervical Cancer Programs are invited to participate in this Request for Applications to become a primary or secondary provider of the MSWISEWOMAN Program. Support provided by the Centers for Disease Control, the Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation, the WISEWOMAN) The program extends preventive medical health services to achieve optimal cardiovascular disease (CVD) health for women aged 35-64 who participate in the CDC-funded National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP).

To allow MS-BCCP Providers an opportunity to decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease in the target population by early enhanced screening and evaluations.

The CDC’s Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation (WISEWOMAN) program is at the forefront of the nation’s efforts to improve cardiovascular health for low-income, uninsured, underinsured, and underserved participants. The intent is to expand medical services to NBCCEDP participants aged 35-64 to address cardiovascular health concerns in a population that are made vulnerable through social and non-medical health needs. Extensive scientific evidence-based links non-medical factors, including economic opportunities and systemic racism, with poor health outcomes and increased mortality rates.

These factors, commonly referred to as social and non-medical health needs, also explain long-standing disparities in cardiovascular health across racial and ethnic groups and between men and women.

While improvements in CVD mortality have been made and life expectancy has increased for all Americans, women continue to experience a disproportionately high mortality rate, and health inequities by race and ethnicity persist. For example, Black and Native American women experience higher rates of total cardiovascular disease, coronary disease, and stroke deaths when compared to white women. Increased efforts to target risk factors and achieve equitable outcomes through culturally-focused interventions are urgently needed.

Better health outcomes in priority populations can be achieved by implementing interventions that disrupt health disparities that are compounded by social conditions. The American Heart Association notes that clinicians should consider factors that affect individuals, such as the social and non-medical health needs, to inform treatment decisions. Public health interventions that focus on advancing health equity are critical.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the US, and stroke is the 5th leading cause. In 2020, about 1 in 5 adults who died from CVD were younger than 65 years old. CVD accounts for about 1 in 3 deaths per year in women.

In 2020, the age-adjusted CVD death rate among women was 183.9/100,000. Hypertension, which is the leading risk factor for CVD, is prevalent among non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic women at 56.7% and 36.8%, respectively. Often, by the time symptoms appear and these women present to a healthcare provider, the disease has advanced, reflecting differences in access to screening and care.

MS-WISEWOMAN PROGRAM continues its efforts to fill the gap for women to ensure adequate and quality health care access as it relates to cardiovascular disease screenings. The MS-WISEWOMAN program (MS-WWP) aims to identify women at the highest risk of CVD and improve the delivery of heart disease and stroke prevention services, particularly for those with hypertension.

The program helps participants understand and reduce their risk factors of CVD and benefit from early detection and treatment. With health equity as a guiding principle, the WISEWOMAN provides culturally informed risk factor screenings and program services that are mindful of the non-medical needs of health. The preventive health services include assessing CVD risk factors, counseling, and referring participants to services that reduce those risks through improved diet, physical activity, tobacco cessation, and medication adherence support.

The goal of the program is to screen medically underserved women to reduce morbidity and mortality from heart disease in Mississippi.

Other timeline events: Period of Performance Start Date: Upon Execution - 06/30/2028