Rural Health
News by Topic: Access
Dec 1, 2025 - Highlights the work of rural pharmacists around New Mexico and their paths to rural practice. Discusses initiatives to address primary care physician shortages by increasing a pharmacist's scope of practice, efforts to recruit rural students to the pharmacy field, and networking across the state.
Source: UNM Health Sciences News
Dec 1, 2025 - Discusses a call from Texas researchers to investigate outcomes related to hospitals changing to Rural Emergency Hospitals (REH). Describes the goals and rules of the REH program as well as what the loss of inpatient care means for both rural and urban communities in Texas and nationally.
Source: KERA News
Nov 28, 2025 - Offers analysis of population data between rural and urban Maine to highlight challenges projected for rural Maine communities. Discusses the impact of population shifts and aging residents on local economies, access to education, and access to healthcare.
Source: The Maine Monitor
Nov 24, 2025 - Describes transportation-related healthcare access challenges in rural Iosco County, Michigan, and the work of one community group to document those challenges. Highlights programs aiming to ease transportation barriers to healthcare access across Michigan.
Nov 24, 2025 - Describes the Rural Occupations Workforce Expansion program, an initiative to recruit rural South Carolinians to train for behavioral health jobs. Discusses challenges for local residents in accessing mental health care.
Source: WCSC
Nov 21, 2025 - Profiles a rural Vermont medically complex child to highlight challenges in accessing specialty care for rural residents. Describes the emergency care action plan created by her medical team that allows her to continue living safely in her rural community.
Source: Larner News and Media
Nov 20, 2025 - Discusses health disparities among rural healthcare provider shortages nationally and in Montana. Highlights 2 residency programs in Billings, Montana aiming to address the shortages of internal medicine and psychiatry providers. Describes how rural practice is integrated into the residencies as well as the benefits for both physician residents and rural communities.
Source: The Daily Yonder
Nov 20, 2025 - A medical service helicopter has been stationed at a rural Texas airport to offer faster access to emergency care. The helicopter acts as a mobile intensive care unit and can offer advanced procedures during transportation to specialized treatment facilities.
Source: 12 News Now
CMS: Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request
Federal Register
Nov 19, 2025 - The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is seeking comments on an information collection titled "Methods for Assuring Access to Covered Medicaid Services Under 42 CFR 447.203 and 447.204." CMS will use the information to monitor ongoing compliance with section 1902(a)(30)(A) of the Social Security Act, and to make informed approval decisions on State plan amendments that propose to make Medicaid rate reductions or restructure payment rates. Beneficiaries, providers, and other affected stakeholders may use the information to raise access issues to state Medicaid agencies and work with agencies to address those issues. Comments are due by January 20, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
Nov 19, 2025 - Describes a program embedding social workers in a rural North Carolina police department to address the increase in non-crime related calls to the police. Notes that similar programs have operated in urban areas. Discusses how successes have led to expanding the program, connecting people to services in under-resourced areas, and other alternative responder programs in the state.
Source: North Carolina Health News