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Rural Health Information Hub
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
News by Topic: Funding

Mar 2, 2026 - Notice from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) seeking comments on proposed revisions to an information collection package for Rural Energy for America (REAP) program, which provides guaranteed loan financing and grant funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses for renewable energy systems or to make energy efficiency improvements. Comments are due by May 1, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
Mar 2, 2026 - Describes progress made and upcoming plans for a grant aiming to train community health workers in Texas to deliver the 4Ms of Age-Friendly Care. This work is part of the National Rural Age-Friendly Initiative, an initiative developed through a partnership between the National Rural Health Association and The John A. Hartford Foundation.
Source: National Rural Health Association
Feb 24, 2026 - Describes the challenges small communities face with maintaining water systems with focus on two communities in Arkansas and Louisiana. Discusses funding, workforce, and aging infrastructure as barriers to consistently providing clean drinking water.
Source: WWNO, NPR
Feb 23, 2026 - The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is seeking comments on unmet transportation infrastructure needs in rural communities. Information collected will be used to inform rural transportation policy and the development of future initiatives through DOT's Rural Opportunities to Use Transportation for Economic Success (ROUTES) Initiative. ROUTES addresses the transportation infrastructure needs of rural and Tribal communities by developing user-friendly tools and information, aggregating DOT resources, and providing direct technical assistance to connect rural and Tribal communities with the funding, financing, and outreach resources available. Comments are due within 60 days of this notice.
Source: Federal Register
Feb 23, 2026 - Discusses the opening of a new Critical Access Hospital in Montana. Highlights the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other funding that made the new facility possible.
Source: USDA Rural Development Newsroom
Related funding: USDA Community Facilities Direct Loan and Grant Program ยท USDA Community Facilities Guaranteed Loan Program
Feb 19, 2026 - Discusses the work of resident physicians in rural Missouri. A new rural residency program has placed 2 residents in rural communities, improving access for those in the area.
Source: KRCG
Feb 16, 2026 - Highlights the Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) application from Wyoming. Discusses the strategy to prioritize sustainability through a perpetuity fund, a unique approach among all RHTP applicants.
Source: The Daily Yonder
Feb 11, 2026 - Highlights the success of a philanthropic-funded program placing automated external defibrillators (AEDs) with law enforcement officers across North Dakota. Describes the importance of the equipment in rural areas where lifesaving emergency care is often far away.
Source: North Dakota Monitor
Feb 11, 2026 - Congressional representatives Andrea Salinas (OR), John Moolenaar (MI), Jill Tokuda (HI), and James Moylan (Guam) have introduced the Rural Health Care Facilities Revitalization Act, a bill to strengthen the nation's rural healthcare infrastructure and ease financial pressures faced by rural hospitals. The bill authorizes rural health facilities to use Community Facility Loans or loan guarantees from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to refinance debt, update technology, and support operating expenses to ensure financial stability.
Source: Office of Congresswoman Andrea Salinas
Feb 9, 2026 - The Alabama Rural Hospital Investment Program, approved during the 2024 legislative session, reached its tax credit cap in just one month. The program encourages donations through tax credits, and officials from the Alabama Rural Hospital Association hope the cap can be increased, so that more hospitals can benefit from the program.
Source: News 4