Families often need a range of services early in a child’s life to support healthy development and prevent long-term health challenges. This includes regular doctor visits that support strong relationships between caregivers and their children, identify family needs that impact child development, and connect families to support. However, families can have a hard time getting the right help at the right time. One provider cannot meet all of a family’s needs alone.
HRSA launched the Transforming Pediatrics for Early Childhood (TPEC) Program in 2022 to fill this gap. The TPEC Program places early childhood development (ECD) experts in pediatric practices so they can better focus on supporting healthy development in early childhood. The program prioritizes services for young children and families who are eligible for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program or are uninsured.
TPEC awardees:
Image description
- Place ECD experts in pediatric practices to deliver early childhood services as a part of a team.
- Build the skills of health professionals statewide to deliver team-based early childhood services.
- Expand and sustain team-based early childhood services to improve the standard of care for young children.
Program impact (key outcomes through Fiscal Year 2025)
Since 2022, TPEC awardees have placed 139 ECD experts within 51 pediatric practices reaching 67,780 families.
Awardees transform how early childhood services are delivered within pediatric primary care. In Fiscal Year 2025, care teams that included ECD experts provided 38,700 well-child visits and conducted 27,000 developmental screenings.
When early childhood services are delivered by a team of health professionals:
- Families come in for preventive health care more regularly
- Caregivers feel more confident in their parenting
- Health professionals stay in their jobs for longer
- Health care is higher quality and more cost-effective
TPEC awardees
The TPEC Program advances the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) priorities by preventing chronic disease early in life and promoting healthy development in early childhood. TPEC awardees improve the quality and cost effectiveness of pediatric primary care through a comprehensive team-based approach that focuses on factors critical to healthy child development. They also build the skills of the pediatric primary care workforce and improve administrative policies and financing strategies to expand and sustain team-based early childhood services.
In Fiscal Year 2026, HRSA awarded approximately $9.5 million to awardees across the nation, both new and continuing, to implement the TPEC Program.
| FY26 TPEC Program Awardees (2026-2031) | City | State |
|---|---|---|
| County of Riverside | Riverside | CA |
| Community Health Center, Incorporated | Middletown | CT |
| Executive Office of the Governor of Delaware | Dover | DE |
| University of Florida | Gainesville | FL |
| Kansas Department of Health & Environment | Topeka | KS |
| Chickasaw Nation | Ada | OK |
| Washington Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics | Seattle | WA |
| FY23 TPEC Program Awardees (2023-2027) | City | State |
|---|---|---|
| County of Los Angeles | Los Angeles | CA |
| Johns Hopkins University | Baltimore | MD |
| Vermont Agency of Human Services | Waterbury | VT |
In Fiscal Year 2027, HRSA anticipates funding down the Rank Order List to make additional awards, pending the availability of funds, for a shorter period of performance. If future funding is available, information will be posted on Grants.gov.
From Fiscal Year 2022–2026, HRSA supported the Early Childhood Evidence to Impact Center to provide technical assistance to TPEC awardees and develop resources for the broader early childhood field. These resources remain available online for continued use.