Rural Health
News by Topic: Health workforce
Jun 29, 2026 - The Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) has announced new funding for rural communities, including funding for rural substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery services; expansion of medical residencies; strengthening rural healthcare networks, and advancing telehealth.
Source: Health Resources & Services Administration
Related funding:
Delta Rural Integrated Health Network Program · Rural Communities Opioid Response Program – Impact (RCORP – Impact) · Rural Communities Opioid Response Program – Planning (RCORP – Planning) · Rural Health Network Advancement Program · Rural Northern Border Region Network Planning Program · Rural Residency Planning and Development Program · Technology-Enabled Collaborative Learning Program · Telehealth Nutrition Services Network Grant Program
Jun 29, 2026 - Provides an interim list of programs that are and are not designated as professional degree programs following the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia's partial stay of the May 1, 2026 Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Final Rule published in the Federal Register. Offers guidance to educational institutions for disbursing funds for affected programs.
Source: Federal Student Aid, Office of the U.S. Department of Education
Jun 26, 2026 - Highlights recommendations from an Idaho state advisory council regarding use of opioid settlement funds. Recommended priorities include funding projects that focus on rural and frontier communities, in addition to first responder mental health support.
Source: Idaho Capital Sun
Jun 26, 2026 - A Virginia university is offering a new psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner program to address a growing need for rural mental healthcare amid healthcare workforce shortages. The program will support placements in Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, and North Carolina.
Source: Augusta Free Press
Jun 26, 2026 - Interview with Damon Harbison, President of Good Samaritan Hospital in Mt. Vernon, Illinois, and Alexis Hackstadt, a registered nurse who recently joined the Good Samaritan staff. They discuss provider shortages in the rural setting and initiatives to attract and retain staff.
Source: WSIU Public Broadcasting
Jun 24, 2026 - A new philanthropic donation from Mike and Gillian Goodrich to the University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine will support the training of rural primary care physicians and meet rural training and residency needs. Discusses how well-supported pathways to rural practice support rural health access.
Source: The University of Alabama at Birmingham News
Jun 24, 2026 - Interviews West Virginia Secretary of Health Dr. Arvin Singh about a community paramedicine initiative to increase assessment and treatment for primary care needs, support chronic disease management, provide follow-up services, and connect people to care in cooperation with rural emergency medical services providers in West Virginia.
Source: West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Jun 23, 2026 - Offers an interview with a South Dakota State University assistant professor in the College of Nursing about rural healthcare challenges and the work the university is doing to address nursing workforce shortages in both short-term acute care and long-term care settings in rural communities.
Source: South Dakota State University News
Jun 23, 2026 - Highlights a medical school producing significant numbers of rural practicing physicians. Discusses perceived contributing factors including recruiting rural residents, a rural focus in the curriculum, and osteopathic medicine being suited to rural practice.
Source: KBIA
Jun 22, 2026 - Discusses challenges with offering trauma-informed sexual assault care in rural Idaho. Describes how workforce shortages contribute to access barriers and how a telehealth hub-and-spoke model overcomes some of those barriers. Offers lessons learned following implementation of the model.
Source: Healthcare IT News