- Weathering the Storm Together: Community Resiliency Hubs Hold the Promise of Local Self-Sufficiency and Supportive Mutual Aid
- Virginia Tech Researchers Bring Rural Families into the Nation's Largest Study of Early Brain and Child Development
- Expanding Access to Cancer Care for Rural Veterans
- VA: Veterans Rural Health Advisory Committee, Notice of Meeting
- Scaling Rural Wellness with Clever Collaboration
- Stroudwater Associates Enhances Rural Healthcare Dashboard with New Data to Support State Rural Transformation Grant Applications
- Harvest Season Is Here: Busy Times Call for Increased Focus on Safety and Health
- HHS Dispatches More Than 70 Public Health Service Officers to Strengthen Care in Tribal Communities
- Wisconsin Rural Hospitals Team up to Form Network
- CMS Launches Landmark $50 Billion Rural Health Transformation Program
- American Heart Association Provides Blood Pressure Kits at Southeast Arkansas Regional Libraries to Support Rural Health
- Broadening Access to Minimally Invasive Surgery Could Narrow Rural-Urban Health Gaps
- Instead of Selling, Some Rural Hospitals Band Together To Survive
- Help Line Gives Pediatricians Crucial Mental Health Information to Help Kids, Families
- Rural Health: A Strategic Opportunity for Governors
New CDC Resource Highlights Proven Strategies to Prevent Youth Substance Use
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released a new resource, ENGAGE: Evidence-Based Strategies to Prevent Youth Substance Use, which outlines effective, research-backed approaches to reduce substance use among U.S. teens. This comprehensive guide presents the most current evidence on what works in prevention and offers practical tools for implementing and evaluating programs.
Youth substance use is preventable. As the landscape of substance use continues to evolve, prevention efforts must adapt to meet emerging challenges. ENGAGE provides state and local organizations with an accessible, actionable framework to plan and execute a wide range of evidence-based strategies—targeting youth before they reach college age.
Comments Requested on Proposed Changes to the Medicare Hospital Cost Report
In the CY2026 Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) proposed rule, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) seeks comments on their proposal to require that hospitals include in their Medicare cost reports, beginning January 1, 2026, the median payer-specific charges that they have negotiated with Medicare Advantage organizations, by Medicare Severity-Diagnosis Related Groups. The rule also requests comments on a proposed methodology hospitals would use to calculate the median payer-specific charge. Critical Access Hospitals, Rural Emergency Hospitals, and hospitals operated by an Indian Health Program would not report median payer-specific charges on cost reports because these hospitals are not paid using the inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS).
Comments are due on September 15.
Announcement for Providers that Reassign their Benefits to CAHs
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that some Method II Critical Access Hospitals may be experiencing denials with Fiscal Intermediary Shared System (FISS) reason codes 31006 and 31007 indicating that providers do not have a reassignment on file in the Provider Enrollment, Chain, and Ownership System (PECOS). Medicare Administrative Contractors will reprocess these claims within approximately two weeks and Method II CAHs do not need to take any action. Additional information to ensure eligible health care providers accurately reassign their benefits to Method II CAHs will be issued shortly.
New Brief Released on Expanding Access to Integrated Medicare-Medicaid Programs in Rural Communities
The Center for Health Care Strategies is pleased to share the new CHCS brief Expanding Access to Integrated Medicare-Medicaid Programs in Rural Communities. This brief, supported by The SCAN Foundation, identifies challenges that hinder the spread of integrated care programs in rural areas and potential solutions to overcome these barriers. By examining how select states are advancing integration in rural areas, the brief distills lessons that other states can apply.
PHC4 Reports Provide Data about Hospitalizations and Ambulatory/Outpatient Cases
The Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4) publicly released new County-Level Condition-Specific and County-Level Utilization reports, giving stakeholders in Pennsylvania valuable insight into ambulatory/outpatient usage and hospitalization rates of high interest conditions, using the most recent data available.
PHC4’s County-Level Condition-Specific Reports display data from Pennsylvania general acute care hospitals and focus on several high interest conditions displaying county-specific rates of hospitalization for Pennsylvania residents. This information reflects data from calendar year 2024, January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024.
PHC4’s County-Level Utilization Reports are updated every quarter and show the overall total number of inpatient hospitalizations and ambulatory/outpatient cases for Pennsylvania residents. These results are displayed by patient age, sex, and payer. The newly released County-Level Utilization Reports reflect data from Q4 of 2024.
In alignment with its mission to empower Pennsylvanians through transparent reporting, PHC4 offers fact-based information to support those charged with the provision and oversight of health care resources. “This type of utilization reporting can be an effective tool for improving patient care, managing costs, and supporting strategic policy decisions in the health care system” said Barry D. Buckingham, PHC4’s Executive Director.
PHC4 is an independent council formed under Pennsylvania statute (Act 89 of 1986, as amended by Act 15 of 2020) in order to address rapidly growing health care costs. PHC4 continues to produce comparative information about the most efficient and effective health care to individual consumers and group purchasers of health services. In addition, PHC4 produces information used to identify opportunities to contain costs and improve the quality of care delivered.
For more information, visit phc4.org or access the reports here.
New Toolkit Launched for Workforce Development Professionals
The Federal Reserve Bank has great news to share as we approach Workforce Development Month. We’ve added a new toolkit for workforce development professionals to the Occupational Mobility Explorer (OME), the online skills-based career visualization tool from the Federal Reserve Banks of Philadelphia and Cleveland.
The toolkit includes:
- an easy-to-follow guide;
- use cases for in-demand occupations; and
- other helpful resources for working with job seekers and employers.
These tools make it easier for people working in job training and career development to use the OME.
USDA Rural Development Awards Nearly $3 Million for America’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI)
The America’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HHFI) is a public-private partnership that provides grants, loans, and technical assistance to improve access to healthy food in low-income communities. The latest investment provided financial assistance to 14 food retail and food retail supply chain projects across 14 states through the Food Access Retail Expansion (FARE) Fund. Fifty percent of projects are located in rural areas and 29 percent of projects serve Very Low-Income Areas. The HHI FARE Fund is administered by Reinvestment Fund on behalf of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (See Ongoing Opportunities).
They are currently accepting funding inquiries for implementation grants. Check for eligibility and submit a Funding Inquiry form by August 18. Applications for loans and technical assistance are accepted on a rolling basis.
CMS Announces Plans to Modernize the Nation’s Digital Health Ecosystem
Last week the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the creation of the CMS Digital Health Ecosystem. This announcement builds on the May 2025 request for information (RFI) issued jointly by CMS and the Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy (ASTP) to solicit suggestions from stakeholders on ways to modernize the nation’s digital health ecosystem.
Drawing from the near 1,400 comments received from the RFI, CMS is calling on the healthcare industry – data networks, Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems, health app developers, providers, and innovators – to voluntarily align around a shared framework for data and access that empowers people, improves care, and accelerates progress. CMS will launch key public infrastructure like the National Provider Directory, enabling modern identity on Medicare.gov, and expanding data-sharing capabilities.
HHS Launches “MAHA in Action” Tracker
The US. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched MAHA in Action—a new platform showcasing the powerful federal initiatives and state-led reforms advancing President Donald J. Trump and Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda.
This interactive tool offers a clear, accessible window into the bold actions reshaping America’s food, health, and public safety systems. MAHA in Action is more than a tracker—it’s a public declaration of the profound changes already underway.
“Make America Healthy Again isn’t just a slogan—it’s a mission statement, and we’re delivering results, fast,” HHS Secretary Kennedy said. “The MAHA in Action tracker puts the wins on the map. It gives the public, the press, and policymakers real-time visibility into how we’re restoring health, integrity, and accountability to every corner of our public health agency.”
The MAHA in Action webpage features updates on federal reforms being implemented across HHS agencies, including removing petroleum-based dyes and harmful additives from the U.S. food supply, closing the GRAS loophole that allows chemicals into food often with unknown safety data, restoring public trust in vaccine safety and scientific transparency, and finding the root causes of the chronic disease epidemic including autism.
The tracker includes an interactive map following Secretary Kennedy’s MAHA Tours—state visits where reform is already taking hold. It also features a growing list of newly enacted state policies aligned with MAHA priorities.
These key victories since Election Day 2024 include:
- 12 states with USDA-approved SNAP waivers restricting products like candy and sugary drinks: Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, West Virginia
- 8 states banning synthetic dyes or certain additives from school meals: Arizona, Delaware, Louisiana, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia
- 2 states requiring warning labels on products with unsafe ingredients: Louisiana, Texas
- 22 states restricting cell phone use in schools to improve the mental and physical health of our children: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia
- Plus states restricting lab-grown meat, requiring nutrition training for medical students, expanding access to ivermectin, removing fluoride from the water supply, improving physical education standards, and much more
“Americans are tired of toxic food, failed science, and chronic disease becoming the norm,” Secretary Kennedy said. “We’re turning the tide through bold federal action at HHS and state-driven reforms. The momentum is real, and we’re just getting started.”
Explore the platform here and find out what changes are happening in your state
HRSA Awards over $15 Million to Help Rural Communities Improve Health and Expand Delivery of Health Care Services
HRSA and the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) have awarded grants to 58 rural health organizations that will begin immediately on four-year projects for FORHP’s Rural Health Care Services Outreach program. The new awardees will use innovative, evidence-informed models to address health care needs unique to their communities and designed to expand access to care and improve health outcomes. This federal funding will provide:
- 18 awards to Healthy Rural Hometown Initiative (HRHI) projects that will address the underlying factors that contribute to the five leading causes of death in the U.S.: heart disease, cancer, unintentional injury, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory disease. A focus on maternal health is also included under this track to address rural needs related to maternal health outcomes.
- 40 awards to Regular Outreach Track projects targeting critical priorities for rural health such as healthy nutrition, chronic disease, adult and childhood obesity, and substance use treatment and prevention.
All projects will be carried out by a local network of partnering organizations that may include rural hospitals, community-based organizations, health departments, schools, health centers, Rural Health Clinics, academic institutions, and other local and state entities. Each award recipient must demonstrate improvement on key health indicators, adding to the evidence base that informs other models for prevention and health promotion.
Click here to learn about the awards!