Healthcare Access in Rural Communities – News
News stories from the past 60 days.
Jul 27, 2026 - Sanford Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System merged in 2025, creating a rural health organization that serves Wisconsin, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Iowa, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. This has improved recruiting and retention of staff and expanded access to care for underserved rural communities.
Source: American Medical Association
Jul 24, 2026 - Interview with Cory Cronin, associate professor at Ohio University's Department of Social and Public Health. He discusses the issues involved in nonprofit rural hospitals spending their community benefit budgets, a requirement to invest in improving the health of the local community overall.
Source: WOUB
Jul 23, 2026 - Discusses a new healthcare clinic that opened in a rural Mississippi Delta community. Highlights the history of healthcare access in the area and the challenges the community faced when there was no clinic, particularly related to transportation to healthcare facilities in other communities. Discusses plans to expand services further in the future.
Source: Mississippi Free Press
Jul 14, 2026 - The Department of Health and Human Services is seeking comments on training and care delivery models to ensure safe and effective use of psychedelic drugs. Questions for consideration include training regarding patient eligibility, drug administration, and post-administration follow up; access for Federally Qualified Health Centers, Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics, and Rural Health Clinics; and technologies that allow for expanded access while maintaining patient safety. Comments are due August 13, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
Jul 1, 2026 - Announcement from the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) that State Primary Care Offices (PCOs) will have additional review time for Health Professional Shortage Areas identified through the 2025 National Shortage Designation Update as "proposed for withdrawal." PCOs may use the additional time to update data and submit revisions where appropriate before HRSA takes final action.
Source: Health Resources & Services Administration
Jun 22, 2026 - Describes mobile health programs in Rural Health Transformation Fund (RHTP) plans. Discusses the hub-and-spoke service delivery model, telemedicine, and remote patient monitoring as methods for increasing healthcare access using RHTP funds.
Source: Healthcare IT News
Jun 8, 2026 - Discusses the findings of a recent study highlighting barriers to healthcare access for rural people with disabilities. Includes an interview with the study author discussing the rural impact of a correlation between disability and Health Professional Shortage Areas.
Source: Daily Yonder