California Health Care Access and Information program staff said the Song Brown 2025 grant cycle will be scored on three equally weighted criteria (75 points total) and answered applicants’ questions about allowable uses of funds, payer‑mix data and midwifery expansion slots.

Why it matters: scoring and eligible expenditures determine how programs prioritize data collection, training‑site partnerships and budget requests in their applications.

Cassini Nuvall, program officer for the certified nurse midwifery program, explained the scoring structure: “There’s going to be a total of 75 points for this application cycle. We are gonna be looking at criteria 1, percent of graduates in areas of unmet need, 25 points. Percent of main training sites in areas of unmet need, up to 5 training sites with the most cumulative hours at 25 points. And the average payer mix of main training sites up to 5 training sites with the most cumulative hours at 25 points.” Nuvall walked applicants through an example of converting percentages into point allocations for each 25‑point criterion.

HCAI staff repeatedly told applicants that training‑site and payer‑mix data are central to scoring. Charles Foust said early in the presentation that “the payer mix information for each training site ends up being 1 third of the score for application, and you should know this information before you start applying,” and later Nuvall demonstrated the agency’s three 25‑point criteria (see provenance). Applicants should therefore prepare payer‑mix data directly with each training site’s administrative office.

On allowable uses, HCAI clarified during Q&A that Song Brown funds are intended for direct education and training of students. Charles Foust confirmed that funds can cover first‑year students and said, “You will be able to use the funds for first years.” He also confirmed that programs may use funds to pay preceptor stipends: “Yes, the funding can be used to pay preceptors.” HCAI also stated that fees charged by clinical sites for placement are not an allowable use: “No. You can only pay for the preceptors, not the fees for clinical placement.”

Cassini Nuvall described CNM‑specific options: CNM applicants seeking to expand for the 2025–26 academic year must have accreditor approval and, if approved, may request up to three midwifery expansion slots in the application’s expansion‑slot dropdown.

HCAI reiterated that only graduates practicing in California are scored for the graduates‑in‑unmet‑need criterion, and that graduate entries require the graduate’s NPI. Training‑site entries should include facility type, NPI, address, cumulative student hours and payer‑mix percentages for each site. Nuvall and Foust warned applicants not to request more program slots than the accrediting body allows.

Ending: Applicants should prioritize collecting payer‑mix data from training sites, graduates’ NPIs and current accreditor letters; questions about eligible expenditures may be directed to songbrown@hcai.ca.gov.