RHIhub This Week - October 8, 2025
As an information clearinghouse on rural health issues, RHIhub provides access to a wide range of resources on relevant topics. Inclusion on RHIhub does not imply endorsement of, or agreement with, the contents by RHIhub or the Health Resources and Services Administration.
Technological Innovation in Rural Health and Human Services Spaces, with Dan ShaneCheck out our latest episode featuring Dan Shane, PhD, Associate Professor with the RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis, in a discussion about the technologies that have recently come to the forefront of rural healthcare, and the challenges holding them back. |
Recently Added to the Online Library |
Oct 6, 2025 -- Discusses the benefits and downsides for hospitals considering converting to a Rural Emergency Hospital, highlighting the choices made by rural hospitals around Arkansas. Discusses reimbursement rates, labor and delivery service access, and general healthcare access. Source: Arkansas Advocate Troy Regional to Benefit from Alabama's New Rural Hospital Investment Program Oct 6, 2025 -- Announces a new Alabama initiative allowing individuals and businesses to support rural hospitals through direct donations in exchange for a credit on the donor's state taxes. Describes the benefits of hospitals in rural communities. Source: The Messenger UNC Health Launches Nation's First Rural OB-GYN Fellowship Oct 6, 2025 -- Announces a new rural obstetric and gynecology fellowship in North Carolina. The goal is to increase access to maternal healthcare in areas identified as maternity care deserts. Source: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill News Decade-Long Collaboration Improves Public Health Outcomes in Rural Minnesota Oct 2, 2025 -- Highlights the benefits of collaboration between academia and healthcare practitioners as demonstrated by a 10 year partnership between an Indian Health Service (IHS) hospital and the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. Describes how the partnership was established to increase access to naloxone and other prevention work as well as how it has grown to include training, innovative pharmacy-based interventions and services, and international perspectives. Source: Indian Health Service |
A series of 9 online learning sessions covering grant writing with a focus on federal funding, particularly opportunities from the Health Resources & Services Administration. The intended audience is State Offices of Rural Health (SORH) staff and their partners and stakeholders. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Oct 13, 2025 Sponsor: National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health NCEA Elder Justice College Ambassador Program Program to create student advocates who work to prevent elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Oct 22, 2025 Sponsors: Keck School of Medicine of USC, National Center on Elder Abuse John and Polly Sparks First Responder Grant for Rural First Responders Mental Health Interventions Grants for evidence-based research and intervention in providing mental health training dissemination to first responders in rural areas. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Oct 23, 2025 Sponsor: American Psychological Foundation Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant Program Grants to support and demonstrate innovative partnerships to train school-based mental health services providers for employment in high need schools and local educational agencies. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Oct 29, 2025 Sponsors: Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), U.S. Department of Education School-Based Mental Health Services (SBMH) Grant Program Grant for state educational agencies, local educational agencies (LEAs), and consortia of LEAs to increase the number of credentialed school-based mental health services providers delivering mental health services to students in high-need LEAs. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Oct 29, 2025 Sponsor: U.S. Department of Education Million Hearts Hospitals & Health Systems Recognition Program A recognition program for hospitals and health systems with innovative cardiovascular health work. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Oct 31, 2025 Sponsors: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Resident Opportunity and Self Sufficiency Service Coordinator Program Grants to fund service coordinators to assist residents of public and Indian housing in making progress towards economic self-sufficiency, including the provision of job training, employment, adult education, housing, and health resources. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Dec 2, 2025 Sponsor: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development AHRQ Health Services Research Demonstration and Dissemination Grants (R18) Supports the dissemination and implementation of research projects related to AHRQ's mission to produce evidence to make healthcare safer, higher quality, more accessible, equitable, and affordable. AHRQ's priorities include an interest in frontier and rural healthcare delivery. Geographic coverage: Nationwide and U.S. territories Application Deadline: May 26, 2029 Sponsors: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Research to Advance the Science of Primary Care (R01) Funding to support research projects that advance the understanding of the role, capacity, and value of primary care to improve patient outcomes and population health. Geographic coverage: Nationwide and U.S. territories Application Deadline: Nov 6, 2029 Sponsors: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Community Health Center Capital Fund LoanPLUS Program A Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) program that provides loan capital and technical assistance designed to meet the needs of smaller health centers and/or those with limited financial resources. Health centers that have not been able to access financing through conventional lenders are encouraged to apply. Geographic coverage: Nationwide and U.S. Territories Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsors: Capital Link, Community Health Center Capital Fund Microsoft Cybersecurity Program for Rural Hospitals Assistance to help rural hospitals keep their health services safe and secure with affordable access to Microsoft security solutions and building cybersecurity capacity. Geographic coverage: Nationwide and U.S. Territories Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Microsoft |
Summarizes the efforts to increase accessible transportation services by 11 grantees of the 2024 National Aging and Disability Transportation Center's Rural Community Innovations Transportation Planning Grant. Includes a report highlighting lessons learned by the grantees discussing community partnerships, outreach, and sustainability. Features programs from Maine, Michigan, New York, Massachusetts, Montana, Texas, Washington, Georgia, and Missouri. Additional links: 2024 Rural Planning Grants Key Learnings and Final Report Sponsoring organization: National Aging and Disability Transportation Center Affordability of Health Professional Education: Proceedings of a Workshop Series—In Brief Summarizes presentations and discussions from the National Academies Global Forum on Innovation in Health Professional Education, convened in early 2025 to explore financial barriers, assess workforce effects, and consider ways to improve the value and accessibility of health professional education. Discusses primary care workforce shortages and lack of training opportunities in rural areas. Sponsoring organization: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Date: 10/2025 Any Mental Illness or Serious Thoughts of Suicide in the Past Year among Adults Report using 2022-2024 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) data to highlight adults experiencing mental illness or thoughts of suicide in the previous year. Appendix includes demographic and geographic characteristics of survey participants including 5 levels of urbanization by county. Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Date: 09/2025 Binge Alcohol Use in the Past Month Report using 2022-2024 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) data to highlight binge alcohol in the previous month use among adults and youth aged 12 to 17. Appendix includes demographic and geographic characteristics of survey participants including 5 levels of urbanization by county. Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Date: 09/2025 How States Can Boost Behavioral Health Services in Rural Communities Explores ways state officials can utilize federal funds to increase mental health and substance use treatment for rural communities. Highlights strategies for increasing access to behavioral health services in rural communities that can be funded through the Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program. Sponsoring organization: Pew Research Center Date: 10/2025 Investing in Primary Care: The Nurse Practitioner Will See You Now Describes opportunities to support advancement of preparation and growth for nurse practitioners (NPs) to meet the population's primary care needs. Explores the importance of NPs in rural and underserved communities, and Health Professional Shortage Areas. Sponsoring organization: Milbank Memorial Fund Date: 10/2025 The Latest Trends in Health Workforce Legislation Summarizes an August 2025 discussion of the National Conference of State Legislatures' Health Workforce Peer Learning Group regarding state healthcare workforce policy trends. Covers state policy levers to recruit and retain members of the health workforce and promote access to care. Includes rural references throughout. Sponsoring organization: National Conference of State Legislatures Date: 10/2025 Major Depressive Episode or Serious Thoughts of Suicide in the Past Year among Adolescents Report using 2022-2024 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) data to highlight major depressive episodes and thoughts of suicide among youth aged 12 to 17. Appendix includes demographic and geographic characteristics of youth surveyed including 5 levels of urbanization by county. Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Date: 09/2025 Many Medicare Advantage and Medicaid Managed Care Plans Have Limited Behavioral Health Provider Networks and Inactive Providers Examines the availability of behavioral health providers in selected Medicare Advantage (MA) and Medicaid managed care networks in 2023. Analyzes provider network lists and MA and Medicaid encounter data for four MA and two Medicaid managed care plans from 10 selected urban and rural counties across five states. Describes the proportion of the behavioral health workforce in each county included in the plans' networks. Discusses the extent to which managed care plans had inactive providers in their network and why these providers did not deliver services to enrollees. Includes data on the percentage of inactive providers in rural and urban counties. Offers recommendations to monitor and improve the accuracy of provider networks. Additional links: Report Highlights Sponsoring organization: Office of Inspector General (HHS) Date: 10/2025 Medicare Waiver Expiration & Telehealth FAQs Provides answers to frequently asked questions regarding the expiration of Medicare telehealth waivers on September 30, 2025. Covers in-person visit requirements, billing procedures, and the applicability of policies across different care settings, including Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs). Additional links: Chart: Telehealth Medicare Post-September 30, 2025 Sponsoring organization: Center for Connected Health Policy: The National Telehealth Policy Resource Center Date: 10/2025 On the Road to Early Detection: Woman's Hospital's Mobile Mammography A podcast episode discussing a mobile mammography unit in Louisiana. Discusses differences in rural and urban breast cancer incidence and how a mobile unit increases access to preventive care. Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association Date: 10/2025 Transforming Rural Health Care Through Medicaid Innovation: Tip Sheet Series Informational tip sheets discussing the use of Medicaid innovations to assist states in creating their Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program applications. Discusses behavioral health, school-based services, and integrated care access. Provides examples, strategies, Medicaid policy information, and resources. Additional links: Improving Access to Integrated Care for Dually Eligible Individuals in Rural Areas, Leveraging Peers and Lay Counselors to Address Behavioral Health Care Workforce Shortages in Rural Areas, Using School-Based Services to Improve Access to Preventive Health Care for Children in Rural Areas Sponsoring organization: Center for Health Care Strategies Date: 10/2025 |
Deadline: Nov 3, 2025 National AgrAbility Project Event Dates: Mar 16 - 19, 2026 Traverse City, MI Conference Website Call for Proposals: 2026 Oregon Forum on Rural Population Health Deadline: Dec 12, 2025 Oregon Office of Rural Health Event Dates: May 14 - 15, 2026 Conference Website |
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