USACRural Health CareRHC Service Providers Process
Step 3: Sign Service Agreement With Applicant

Step 2 Step 4

Step 3: Sign Service Agreement With Applicant

After the competitive bidding period has ended, the HCP will evaluate all bids received and select the most cost-effective bid. If you are selected as the most cost-effective solution, you can sign a contract or service agreement with the HCP. If you enter into a contract or service agreement with the HCP before the allowable contract start date (ACSD), the applicant will be denied funding.

Once the applicant has chosen the most cost-effective bid for one or more of the services requested on their FCC Form 461 (HCF Program) or FCC Form 465 (Telecom Program), the service provider and applicant sign a service agreement.

Please note the following:

  • Applicants do not need a contract and can receive services under a month-to-month arrangement.
  • Should an applicant sign a multi-year contract, the applicant may request that the contract be reviewed for evergreen designation when they submit it with an FCC Form 462 or 466 in Step 4: Start Services. Evergreen designation frees applicants from having to re-bid services annually. For more information about the criteria for evergreen designation, visit the Evergreen Contracts webpage.

Next Step

After a service agreement is signed, the applicant requests funding from USAC by submitting an FCC Form 462 (HCF Program) and/or an FCC Form 466 (Telecom Program).

The material on these webpages is provided for general information only and should not be relied upon or used as the sole basis for making decisions without consulting the RHC program rules, orders, and other primary sources of information. Applicants and service providers are ultimately responsible for knowing and complying with all RHC program rules and procedures.