- CMS: Medicare Program; Prospective Payment System and Consolidated Billing for Skilled Nursing Facilities; Updates to the Quality Reporting Program for Federal Fiscal Year 2026
- CMS: Medicare Program; FY 2026 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update and Hospice Quality Reporting Program Requirements
- Public Inspection: CMS: Medicare Program: Prospective Payment System and Consolidated Billing for Skilled Nursing Facilities; Updates to the Quality Reporting Program for Federal Fiscal Year 2026
- Public Inspection: CMS: Medicare Program: Fiscal Year 2026 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update and Hospice Quality Reporting Program Requirements
- CMS: Request for Information; Health Technology Ecosystem
- VA: Staff Sergeant Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program Funding Opportunity
- State: 60-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: J-1 Visa Waiver Recommendation Application
- Public Inspection: CMS: Request for Information: Health Technology Ecosystem
- HHS: Request for Information (RFI): Ensuring Lawful Regulation and Unleashing Innovation To Make American Healthy Again
- VA: Solicitation of Nominations for the Appointment to the Advisory Committee on Tribal and Indian Affairs
- GAO Seeks New Members for Tribal and Indigenous Advisory Council
- VA: Staff Sergeant Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program Funding Opportunity
- Telehealth Study Recruiting Veterans Now
- USDA Delivers Immediate Relief to Farmers, Ranchers and Rural Communities Impacted by Recent Disasters
- Submit Nominations for Partnership for Quality Measurement (PQM) Committees
AHRQ Requests Supplemental Evidence and Data on Improving Rural Health Through Telehealth-Guided Provider-to-Provider Communication
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) within HHS is seeking scientific information submissions from the public. Scientific information is being solicited to inform our review on Improving Rural Health Through Telehealth-Guided Provider-to-Provider Communication, which is currently being conducted by the AHRQ’s Evidence-based Practice Centers (EPC) Program. Access to published and unpublished pertinent scientific information will improve the quality of this review.
Biden Administration to Expand COVID-19 Vaccine Program to 950 Community Health Centers
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), announced that an additional 700 HRSA-supported health centers will be invited to join the Health Center COVID-19 Vaccine Program. These health centers will have the opportunity to join the program over the next six weeks, increasing the total number of invited health center participants to 950. Find the full HHS press release here and a list of the health centers participating in or invited to join the program here.
President Biden Signs the American Rescue Plan into Law
Yesterday, President Biden signed into law a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package. Thanks to the advocacy of NRHA and its members, the package includes a number of provisions to protect and promote rural health. Most notably, NRHA has secured the infusion of $8.5 billion for rural providers, a key provision which NRHA worked closely with Senator Manchin’s office to develop. The $8.5 billion for rural providers will be provided through a fund called the Health Care Heroes Sustainability Fund (HCHSF), which will be similar to the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) but specific to rural providers. Find details on the additional rural health provisions included in the relief package in the National Rural Health Association’s latest Rural Health Voices blog.
Dollar General’s Reach Could Give It a Rural Advantage in Vaccine Distribution
By Liz Carey
The retailer is in talks with the CDC about delivering Covid-19 vaccines to underserved areas. Three-quarters of Americans live within five miles of one of its 17,000 stores, the company says.
Read more
Tech Education Rebuilding Rural Economies from Within
By Caroline Tremblay, Radically Rural
Two programs from Kansas and Mississippi lead the way in providing technical training and tools for young rural entrepreneurs.
Read more
Unlike Previous Stimulus Package, Relief Funding Will Reach Every U.S. County
By Olivia Weeks
The American Rescue Plan will distribute more than $130 billion to local governments. Included in that total is nearly $9 billion for rural county governments, plus additional funds for the cities located in those counties.
Read more
Commentary: To Invest in Infrastructure, Invest in People
By Tom Barkin, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
The president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond argues that in order to fully benefit from infrastructure investments we need to address our nation’s workforce shortage.
Read more
New Covid Infections and Deaths Decline by 20% in Rural Counties
By Tim Murphy and Tim Marema
New infections have dropped by 80 percent since their peak in mid-January. The number of deaths per week has fallen by 60 percent in the past two months.
Read more
Groups Organize Effort to Delay OMB’s Redefinition of ‘Nonmetropolitan’
By Tim Marema
The Aspen Institute and Brookings Institution say the Office and Management and Budget should pause to learn what the full impact of the change will be and to look at other issues.
Read more
Sources of Insurance Coverage in Nonmetropolitan Areas: The Role of Public and Private Insurance Since 2009
This brief from the RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis uses the American Community Survey five-estimates to compare types of health insurance coverage for the nonelderly in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas.