- 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
HRSA 340B Rebate Model Pilot Program Comment Deadline Extended
The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is providing additional time to submit comments for evaluation of potential impacts of access to drugs for patients under a new model for HRSA’s 340B Drug Pricing Program.
Comments on this notice should be received no later than April 20, 2026.
Rural-Urban Trends in the Burden of Diabetes Among U.S. Adults
This brief provides an updated analysis of diabetes incidence, prevalence, and mortality across rural and urban counties.
The National Health Interview Survey (2021, 2022, and 2023) provided diabetes incidence and prevalence data. CDC Wonder provided diabetes mortality data.
Community Resource and Asset Mapping Tip Sheet Available
This resource summarizes community asset-mapping, a collaborative process that identifies local assets – for example, funding or services or useful connections.
The tip sheet is a product of the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program – Technical Assistance (RCORP-TA), a program funded through the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy.
Rural Residency Planning and Development Funding Notice Coming Soon
Under this program, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) provides start-up funding to grant recipients to create accredited rural residency programs in a qualifying medical specialty. These residency programs are then sustained long-term through viable and stable funding mechanisms, such as Medicare and in states where there is a viable path of support, through Medicaid or other consistent state funding.
The current forecast estimates this funding opportunity will post on April 14, 2026. Historically, we have competed FORHP’s RRPD program annually. Three resources to help you prepare for this year’s competition before it posts:
- Review application requirements in last year’s NOFO (HRSA-25-007) on Grants.gov
- Visit the program’s Frequently Asked Questions on HRSA.gov
- Use the planning tools created by our FORHP-funded technical assistance partners at RuralGME.org. Their portal is free but requires registration.
Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Medicare Advantage Enrollment 2025 Report Released
The Rural Policy Research Institute (RUPRI) presented this data report as an interim review of Medicare Advantage (MA) enrollment while awaiting the release of updated detailed Medicare enrollment data.
The MA rate of penetration (i.e., the proportion of Medicare enrollees in MA plans) in the United States has grown, since at least 2009, and surpassed 50 percent in 2023. While nonmetropolitan MA penetration has also grown steadily during that time, it has not yet passed the 50 percent level. Although MA penetration rates continued to grow in 2025, there were signs of a substantial slowing in the rate of growth. In 2025, over 22 percent of counties saw a decline in their MA penetration rate.
Annual Disability Statistics Compendium 2026 Available
Researchers used data from various federal resources – including the Social Security Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration, and the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey – to compile statistics about the lives of people with disabilities.
Section 10 presents data on people with disabilities in rural areas, and compares the prevalence of disability in rural, demographics, employment, income, and insurance coverage across rural, urban, and suburban areas. The research is funded by the Administration for Community Living, an operating division of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
White House Releases National Framework on Artificial Intelligence
The White House released its national artificial intelligence framework on March 20, outlining the administration’s policy priorities and recommendations for Congress.
Building on an executive order from December 2025, Ensuring A National Policy Framework For Artificial Intelligence, the framework identifies seven key priorities, including promoting innovation, strengthening national competitiveness, and addressing key safety and public trust concerns.
Updated Topic Guides Available at the RHIhub
With support from HRSA’s Federal Office of Rural Health Policy, the Rural Health Information Hub (RHIhub) has been updating their Topic Guides that bring together key resources and information in one spot.
Newly updated this week: Social Determinants of Health for Rural People, and Conducting Rural Health Research, Needs Assessments, and Program Evaluations.
CHWs and Peer Support Expand Behavioral Health Care Desert Solutions
A new resource from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) explores solutions for behavioral health care deserts – areas with severe shortages of mental health providers, long wait times, high costs, and other barriers. Research shows that the number of behavioral health clinicians in rural areas is significantly lower than in metropolitan areas. One promising way to fill in the workforce gap is to add trusted individuals who are not clinical providers but come from the communities they serve:
- Community Health Workers (CHWs) act as a liaison between providers and health care consumers to help navigate local health and social services.
- Peer Support Specialists are individuals with lived experience of substance use disorders who go through specialized training for recovery mentorship, emotional support, and assistance with practical needs such as paperwork and transportation.
Bulletin Released on CHW Enrollment in the Pennsylvania Medical Assistance Program
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) released MA Bulletin 08-26-50 on March 19, 2026. This bulletin is to advise providers that community health workers (CHWs) may enroll in the Medical Assistance (MA) Program to render services to beneficiaries in the MA managed care delivery system, effective April 18, 2026.