Rural Health
Top Stories
Top news stories from the past 60 days. For more, see news by topic or news by state.
Oct 24, 2024 - Announces the release of a report sharing best practices, models, research, and policies related to rural age-friendly care. Highlights the partnership between the National Rural Health Association and The John A. Hartford Foundation in addressing age-friendly care for rural older adults.
Source: National Rural Health Association
Oct 23, 2024 - Highlights the work of the nonprofit Northern Forest Center to fund workforce housing development in rural Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York. Notes that housing shortages have contributed to recruitment challenges for local businesses, including healthcare organizations. Describes their "capital stack" funding approach and the potential for replication in rural communities elsewhere in the country.
Source: The Daily Yonder
Oct 22, 2024 - Profiles Montevideo Medical Academy, a medical training program creating a pipeline for rural Minnesota high school students toward healthcare professions. Describes how the program was started and successes early in the program.
Source: The Daily Yonder
Oct 21, 2024 - Highlights the experience of a pregnant rural Georgia woman in a maternity care desert. Discusses maternity care deserts nationally, obstetric and gynecologic care in Federally Qualified Health Centers, general health disparities in areas with limited access to healthcare, and increasing the healthcare workforce for rural areas.
Source: WABE, PBS, NPR
Oct 20, 2024 - Announcement of new federal Community Liaisons program to assist communities impacted by Hurricane Helene with ongoing recovery efforts. Provides overview of ongoing programs including Disaster Recovery Centers and mass feeding sites serving impacted communities in rural North Carolina. Details additional resources including home inspections and Transitional Sheltering Assistance.
Source: The White House
Oct 16, 2024 - Announces an amendment to Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to allow coverage of traditional healthcare practices at Indian Health Service (IHS) facilities, tribal facilities, and urban Indian organizations in Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Oregon. The action is expected to improve access to culturally appropriate healthcare. Notes the health disparities for American Indian and Alaska Native populations compared to the general population.
Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Oct 15, 2024 - Order from the Federal Communications Commission waiving certain program rules for the Rural Health Care Program providers impacted by Hurricane Milton. Highlights changes to deadlines for appeals and waivers, information requests, and invoices as well as document retention rules.
Source: Universal Service Administrative Co.
Oct 14, 2024 - Discusses higher breast cancer mortality rates among American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) women. Explores treatment barriers including transportation and long distances to care. Notes lower screening rates among AI/AN women and efforts to develop more culturally responsive outreach tools.
Source: ABC News
Oct 14, 2024 - Describes the use of ride-hailing apps by rural Georgians for transportation to medical appointments. Highlights data showing that a significant number of rural residents are using the apps for transportation to appointments over 100 miles away. Notes that some insurance plans cover transportation costs, but services may be less available in rural communities.
Source: KFF Health News
Oct 8, 2024 - Order from the Federal Communications Commission waiving certain program rules for the Rural Health Care Program providers impacted by Hurricane Helene. Highlights changes to deadlines for appeals and waivers, information requests, the Health Care Connect Fund Program annual report, and invoices as well as document retention rules.
Source: Universal Service Administrative Co.
Oct 7, 2024 - Request for public comments on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) National Disaster Recovery Framework. Notes that the framework shapes the federal government's approach to disaster recovery assistance, with implications for state, local, and territorial governments, Tribal Nations, and nongovernmental partners. Comments are due by October 23, 2024.
Source: Federal Emergency Management Agency
Oct 4, 2024 - Explores factors contributing to low patient volumes at field hospitals erected in rural North Carolina after Hurricane Helene. Discusses how damaged power and communications systems may have hindered efforts to spread the word about the temporary services, and identifies collaboration with local AM radio stations as a potential workaround. Notes ongoing efforts by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and a range of local and national partners to locate missing persons and prepare for a potential surge in patient volumes.
Source: NBC News
Oct 4, 2024 - Describes efforts by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to assist communities and individuals impacted by Hurricane Helene. Highlights resources for farmers, foresters, and communities including expedited crop insurance payments, disaster assistance programs, and nutrition assistance programs.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Oct 3, 2024 - Discusses efforts to install more full-size changing tables for people with disabilities in public bathrooms across the country. Highlights the impacts of a new full-size changing table installed at a rest stop in rural Iowa, and notes that the need for such amenities is often greater in rural areas. Explores factors contributing to the recent uptick in full-size changing table installations, including advocacy efforts, state legislation, and funding from state governments.
Source: KFF Health News
Oct 2, 2024 - Announces the Emergency Medicine Analytics Team through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Health Administration Office of Rural Health in an effort to improve healthcare for rural veterans. The team will focus on access to acute services and the quality of emergency care with attention to evaluation, innovation, and dissemination of effective practices. Notes the high costs to the VA for veterans that receive emergency care at non-VA emergency departments.
Source: Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Local Radio Stations Become A Lifeline For Rural Appalachian Communities Cut Off By Hurricane Helene
Oct 1, 2024 - Highlights the role local radio stations have played in conveying important information for rural North Carolina communities impacted by Hurricane Helene. Notes that previous storm-related emergencies prompted local leaders to prepare radio stations as part of their response efforts.
Source: Southern Living
Oct 1, 2024 - Announces 3 new research network hubs to serve rural communities through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Communities Advancing Research Equity for Health (CARE for Health) program. The hubs will expand NIH-funded studies into primary care settings.
Source: National Institutes of Health
Sep 26, 2024 - Announces the distribution of more than $1.5 billion in grant funding through the State Opioid Response (SOR), Tribal Opioid Response (TOR), and SOR/TOR Technical Assistance programs. Highlights funding priorities, including expanded services for individuals aged 16 to 25, expanded MOUD access for incarcerated populations, and services that utilize an integrated, whole-person approach.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Sep 26, 2024 - Describes efforts by the Kansas Department of Education to source local food for school meals in rural western Kansas. Discusses how the predominance of commodity crops has led to a lack of options for purchasing local fruits and vegetables. Highlights barriers faced by specialty crop growers and notes the health and economic benefits of more diversified local food systems.
Source: High Plains Public Radio
Sep 25, 2024 - Provides an overview of recent research showing widening disparities in life expectancy and health quality for rural and urban men near retirement age. Discusses possible contributing factors including higher rates of smoking, obesity, and cardiovascular conditions among rural men. Notes expected challenges for rural communities as residents age and provider shortages persist.
Source: USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics
Sep 24, 2024 - Announces funding for supporting rural health care from the Health Resources and Services Administration. The funding prioritizes maternal health, behavioral health, and expanding access to care.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Sep 23, 2024 - Highlights the increases in rural suicide with focus on the impact on Black farmers in Tatums, Oklahoma. Discusses farming-related stressors, stigma, historic racism, workforce issues, and mental health resources.
Sep 23, 2024 - New rural hospitals are being built in Wyoming and Kansas despite the national trend of rural hospital closures. Discusses federal funding sources and the impact of limited access to hospital services for rural residents.
Source: USA Today, KFF Health News
Sep 21, 2024 - Highlights the Supporting Community, Outpatient, Urgent Care & Telehealth Services (SCOUTS) program from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs. The program offers home visits in the days following an emergency department visit by an older veteran. Notes the benefits of the program for rural veterans that may not have access to other services and plans to expand the program into rural areas.
Source: VA News
Sep 17, 2024 - Examines the economic pressures that have led to farm
consolidation and widespread changes to agricultural
practices, and how these issues intersect with farmer
mental health and the vitality of rural communities.
Discusses the related issue of population loss in rural
Kansas, leading to increased risks for social isolation and
loneliness.
Source: High Plains Public Radio
Sep 17, 2024 - Announcement from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services of funding awards to support health workforce initiatives in underserved and rural communities. Provides an overview of awardees, including nursing and primary care workforce programs, community-based mental health providers, and pediatric mental health training initiatives.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Sep 13, 2024 - Announcement from The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) of a public health emergency related to Hurricane Francine. The public health emergency exists beginning September 10, 2024 in Louisiana. Offers information and resources for those impacted and responding to the hurricane including CMS waivers, healthcare enrollment, a disaster toolkit, dialysis care, and medical equipment and supplies replacement.
Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Sep 13, 2024 - Describes a new initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation which will equip ambulances in rural southwest Minnesota with telemedicine rigs. Notes that the program aims to connect those involved in rural vehicle crashes more quickly with advanced trauma care.
Source: MPR News
Sep 12, 2024 - Announcement of grant funding to support veteran suicide prevention programming, with priority given to applicants based in rural, Tribal, and other under-resourced areas. Notes that the grant program is part of the VA's larger National Strategy for Preventing Veteran Suicide. Outlines additional components of the strategy, including free crisis care, a crisis phone line, outreach campaigns, and more.
Source: VA News
Sep 11, 2024 - Discusses community infrastructure as a driver of the health gap between urban and rural areas. Highlights a South Carolina organization addressing these issues through community engagement and patient education and support. Notes the challenges for rural communities in accessing funding to address health disparities.
Source: The Daily Yonder
Sep 11, 2024 - Provides an overview of efforts by the public health department in Jefferson County, Washington to support access to immunization and other healthcare services among low-income rural families. Outlines a range of strategies including community-based research, "data walks" to share research findings, and interactive, solution-development workshops.
Source: National Association of County & City Health Officials
Sep 11, 2024 - Discusses efforts by the Ho-Chunk Nation's Department of
Agriculture to support a strong local food system by
drawing on traditional knowledge and cultural practices.
Highlights programs that support Indigenous farmers and
increase access to fresh produce in tribal communities.
Source: WUWM
Sep 10, 2024 - Presents overview of Genomic Answers for Kids, a research program that offers free access to genetic testing for children in rural Kansas. Describes how the program partners with rural physicians to identify eligible participants. Highlights the impacts of receiving a diagnosis for children and families, but notes that the process can take years and a diagnosis is not guaranteed.
Source: KCUR
Sep 10, 2024 - Highlights efforts by the Center for Alaska Native Health Research (CANHR) to address high suicide rates in the remote Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta region. Details the development of culturally-relevant programming which builds upon community strengths and traditions. Discusses funding barriers and efforts to implement the program model in other communities, including military settings.
Source: NPR
Sep 9, 2024 - Highlights challenges with providing emergency medical services (EMS) in rural Wyoming. Discusses long response times and efforts to mitigate the associated poor outcomes, outreach and new service delivery methods, and issues related to billing and sustainability.
Source: WyoFile
Sep 6, 2024 - Offers overview of challenges for rural pharmacies in North Carolina and across the country, highlighting a recent increase in rural pharmacy closures. Discusses reimbursement, workforce recruitment, and volume purchasing as contributors to closures.
Source: North Carolina Health News
Sep 4, 2024 - Discusses plans to reopen a Critical Access Hospital in Tillman County, Oklahoma after eight years of closure. Describes how the closure increased transportation time for locals seeking hospital-level care. Notes that the new facility is supported by a mix of federal and state funding.
Source: High Plains Public Radio
Sep 4, 2024 - Provides overview of an informal network supporting aging adults in rural Glen Ullin, ND. Describes services offered by a resource coordinator, nurse practitioner, volunteer EMT crew, and local priest. Notes that the physical distance separating neighbors in some rural communities can both complicate healthcare access and lead to loneliness.
Source: NPR
Sep 3, 2024 - Highlights the growing need for Spanish-language healthcare services in Utah, particularly in rural areas with large immigrant populations. Discusses the role of partnerships and diverse organizational leadership for meeting the needs of bilingual patient populations. Details efforts to address bilingual provider shortages through pipeline programs and regulatory changes.
Source: Utah News Dispatch
Sep 3, 2024 - Details a project piloted by the Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC) to build four "tiny homes" for use by medical students in western North Carolina. Notes that students have struggled in the past to find housing for their clinical rotations in the region.
Source: WLOS News 13
Sep 3, 2024 - Profiles a North Dakota farmer as he balances a need for long-term care with cost considerations and a desire to remain on the farm. Highlights struggles faced by many aging farm families, who may feel pressured to sell land and other assets in order to afford the high costs of long-term care. Notes the unpopularity of long-term care insurance and barriers to Medicaid enrollment for landowners.
Source: NPR
Aug 30, 2024 - Describes an ongoing study funded by the National Institutes of Health to develop wearable sensors that would alert farmworkers to the warning signs of heat-related illness. Features the perspectives of Florida farmworkers who are participating in the research. Notes that farmworkers experience significantly increased risk of death due to heat exposure, and heat-related regulations to protect workers currently vary from state to state.
Source: NBC News
Aug 30, 2024 - Describes the creation of a student-run grocery store in rural Cody, Nebraska, which has now been open for over a decade. Discusses recent rural grocery store closures across Nebraska, and the wide-ranging impacts on rural communities.
Source: Flatwater Free Press
Aug 29, 2024 - Announcement of new rules adopted to guide up to $9 billion in targeted investments to expand 5G mobile wireless broadband services in rural areas. Notes that investments will be guided by new mobile coverage data and updated broadband coverage maps.
Source: Federal Communications Commission
Aug 28, 2024 - Provides overview of recent research on the potential role
of nurse practitioners in easing rural primary care
provider shortages. Discusses the need for more
transition-to-practice support, financial education, and
mentoring opportunities for rural nurse practitioners.
Highlights the recently launched Family Nurse Practitioner
track at Boise State, which aims to meet a rising interest
in doctoral nursing degrees.
Source: Boise State News
Aug 28, 2024 - Provides overview of new research published in the Journal
of Rural Health on the vulnerability of rural hospitals to
ransomware attacks. Notes that such attacks are more likely
to target urban hospitals, but rural hospitals are more
vulnerable to the impacts. Discusses impacts to rural
patients and the need for more advance preparation among
rural hospitals.
Source: University of Minnesota
Aug 27, 2024 - Analyzes Fatal Accident Report System (FARS) data to discuss traffic death comparisons for rural and urban counties. Notes reasons for the disparity including emergency response times, speed limits, and risky driving behavior.
Source: The Daily Yonder
Aug 27, 2024 - Features the perspectives of Colorado farmworkers on the
availability of personal protective equipment (PPE) and
other workplace precautions to prevent the spread of bird
flu. Notes challenges faced by state health and agriculture
departments in distributing free PPE to producers and
educating farmworkers on protective measures.
Source: KFF Health News
Aug 26, 2024 - Announces funding for supporting health insurance enrollment assistance through HealthCare.gov. The grants will fund 44 Navigators for the purpose of outreach to underserved groups including rural residents.
Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Aug 26, 2024 - Provides overview of Shackle Free Buzz, a program in rural eastern North Carolina that trains barbers and beauticians as community health ambassadors. Describes the social significance of barber shops and beauty salons in many rural Black communities. Highlights various topics addressed by the program, including vaccine hesitancy, health-related social needs, and chronic disease awareness.
Source: NC Health News
Aug 26, 2024 - Highlights the Technology-based Eye Care Services program through the VA Office of Rural Health, a program using telehealth to expand access to vision care for rural veterans.
Source: VA News
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