RHIhub This Week - December 3, 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.
Rural Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and TraumaOur updated topic guide shares information and resources on EMS and trauma care services and systems in rural areas. It covers training and education opportunities for EMS staff and volunteers, ideas to help with recruiting staff and volunteers, information on the operations and funding sources supporting rural EMS services, and more! |
Recently Added to the Online Library |
Dec 1, 2025 -- Reports on the progress of a recently started nonprofit in rural Kentucky aiming to offer services to local homeless residents. Discusses the challenges associated with affordable housing in the community and funding for the nonprofit. Source: Kentucky Lantern No Clinics for Miles: UNM College of Pharmacy Alums Bring Vital Health Care to Rural Northern New Mexico 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 Federal RegisterCMS: Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Repeal of Minimum Staffing Standards for Long-Term Care FacilitiesDec 3, 2025 -- Notice of interim final rule with comment from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) repealing provisions of the May 10, 2024, final rule titled "Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Minimum Staffing Standards for Long-Term Care Facilities and Medicaid Institutional Payment Transparency Reporting." This interim final rule removes the minimum staffing requirements outlined in the May 10, 2024, final rule and reinstates nurse staffing requirements set forth in the October 4, 2016, final rule. These regulations are effective on February 2, 2026. Comments are due by February 2, 2026. Source: Federal Register CMS: Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Calendar Year 2026 Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) Rate Update; Requirements for the HH Quality Reporting Program and the HH Value-Based Purchasing Expanded Model; Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies (DMEPOS) Competitive Bidding Program Updates; DMEPOS Accreditation Requirements; Provider Enrollment; and Other Medicare and Medicaid Policies Dec 2, 2025 -- Notice of a final rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) updating the home health payment rates for calendar year (CY) 2026. This rule also finalizes changes to the face-to-face encounter policy, Home Health Quality Reporting Program (HH QRP), and the expanded Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) Model requirements; updates the Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies (DMEPOS) Competitive Bidding Program (CBP); and makes a technical change to the home health conditions of participation. Among other things, this rule also finalizes permanent and temporary behavior adjustments and recalibrates the case-mix weights and update the functional impairment levels; comorbidity subgroups; and low-utilization payment adjustment (LUPA) thresholds for CY 2026. These regulations are effective January 1, 2026. Source: Federal Register |
Funding for registered Continuum of Care communities to implement coordinated approaches to reduce the prevalence of unsheltered homelessness; and improve services engagement, health outcomes, and housing stability among highly vulnerable unsheltered individuals and families. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Jan 14, 2026 Sponsor: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development 2026 Risk Reduction Learning Collaborative: Tribally Led Health Programs & Urban Indian Organizations A collaborative learning opportunity for tribally-led health programs and urban Indian organizations to enhance their capacity to lead local initiatives to reduce Alzheimer's/dementia risk and improve brain health. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Jan 16, 2026 Sponsors: Alzheimer's Association, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, National Association of County and City Health Officials NBCC Foundation Rural Scholarships Scholarships for students residing in rural areas who are currently enrolled in a master's level counseling program and are committed to practicing in rural communities after graduation. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Application Deadline: Jan 31, 2026 Sponsor: National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) Foundation AgriSafe Nurse Scholar Program A distance learning opportunity available to rural nurses designed to increase knowledge base in prevention, identification, and assessment of diseases related to agricultural work exposures. A partial scholarship is available for nurses working in nonprofit organizations, Rural Health Clinics, Federally Qualified Health Centers, and educational institutions. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: AgriSafe Network Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) Funding for security enhancements and activities for nonprofit organizations that are at high risk of terrorist attack. Geographic coverage: Nationwide and U.S. Territories Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Federal Emergency Management Agency NRHA Rural Hospital CEO Certification Program A rural hospital leadership and certification program for current and future rural hospital CEOs. Geographic coverage: Nationwide and U.S. territories Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: National Rural Health Association NRHA Rural Hospital CFO Certification Program A leadership and certification program for current Chief Financial Officers of rural hospitals. Geographic coverage: Nationwide and U.S. Territories Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsors: Center for Rural Health Leadership, National Rural Health Association NRHA Rural Hospital CNO Certification Program A leadership and certification program for current Chief Nursing Officers of rural hospitals. Geographic coverage: Nationwide and U.S. Territories Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsors: Center for Rural Health Leadership, National Rural Health Association Project TRANSAM A cooperative action program between the Indian Health Service and the Department of Defense that allows for redistribution of surplus medical equipment and supplies for federally recognized tribes. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsors: Indian Health Service, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Rural Health Care Outcomes Accelerator A 3-year initiative designed to eliminate rural health disparities by helping hospitals and clinicians provide high-quality evidence-based care. Assistance includes free access to evidence-based programs, consultants, networking, and recognition. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: American Heart Association Technical Assistance - University of Rochester Medicine Recovery Center of Excellence Technical assistance for rural communities to help with initiatives that address substance use disorder. Geographic coverage: Nationwide Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: University of Rochester Medicine Recovery Center of Excellence |
Discusses disparities in trauma care in rural and urban communities in the United States. Examines weaknesses in the current trauma system and provides associated legislative solutions. Offers policy strategies for rural regions and trauma systems with limited capacity. Author(s): Bilal Irfan, Zain Hashmi, Tatiana Ramos, Molly Jarman Location: Health Services Research, e70073 Date: 12/2025 Calendar Year 2026 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical Center Final Rule (CMS-1834-FC) Fact sheet providing an overview of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) final rule regarding updates and changes to the Medicare payments for hospital outpatient and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) services for calendar year 2026. Summarizes provisions regarding changes to hospital price transparency; Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) and partial hospital program rate setting; updates to the Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting (OQR), Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting (ASCQR), and Rural Emergency Hospital Quality Reporting (REHQR) Programs; hospital quality start ratings; and more. Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Date: 11/2025 Current and Maximum Acceptable Travel Times to Primary Care Among US Older Adults Explores the threshold of travel time at which it becomes a barrier to primary care access and for which groups. Uses data from a study conducted in February 2025 of adults age 50 and older. Features demographics and statistics with breakdowns by urban, suburban, and rural or other areas. Author(s): Tabasa Ozawa, Ying Liu, Soeren Mattke Location: JAMA Network Open, 8(11), e2545280 Date: 11/2025 Data Book: Beneficiaries Dually Eligible for Medicare and Medicaid Provides an overview of dual-eligible beneficiaries who receive benefits from both Medicare and Medicaid. Analyzes data from calendar year 2022 to examine beneficiary demographics, eligibility pathways, utilization and spending patterns, and more. Exhibit 6 on page 15 includes a breakdown of beneficiaries based on urban or rural residence. Sponsoring organizations: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare Payment Advisory Commission Date: 12/2025 Gaps in Artificial Intelligence Research for Rural Health in the United States: A Scoping Review Presents a scoping review exploring the extent of research on artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare in rural communities. Discusses the application of AI in rural US healthcare and challenges that limit the development, implementation, or evaluation of AI in the rural areas. Author(s): Katherine E. Brown, Sharon E. Davis Location: Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association Date: 11/2025 Measuring State Flex Program Impact: Tools to Support Outcome Measurement and Evaluation Toolkit designed to help State Flex Programs (SFPs) with manage and document project performance and comply with the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy's expectations regarding outcome measurement and reporting. Provides blank worksheets for SFPs as they work through the steps for their projects, as well as links to outcome measurement resources. Additional links: Webinar Recording Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team Date: 12/2025 A Novel Approach to Incorporate Frontier Areas Into Urban–Rural Geographic Classifications: Integrated Metropolitan-to-Frontier Area Codes Explores an effort to develop a rural-urban classification that captures the remoteness of frontier areas. Details the tract-level Integrated Metropolitan-to-Frontier Area Codes (tlMFAC), a combination of the USDA's Frontier and Remote Area (FAR) definition and the Rural-Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) Codes. Discusses the conceptual framework for tlMFAC and the census tract-level results of applying the definition nationally. Author(s): Brody J. Gibson, Elizabeth Dobis, John Cromartie, et al. Location: Journal of Rural Health, 41(4), e70102 Date: 11/2025 When the Hospital CEO Becomes the Patient: Rural Maternal Care Up Close A conversation with Eilidh Pederson, CEO of Western Wisconsin Health, focused on her experience giving birth at a rural Critical Access Hospital. Discusses high-quality maternal healthcare access in rural communities. Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association Date: 12/2025 |
Deadline: Jan 15, 2026 National Rural Health Association Event Dates: May 19 - 22, 2026 San Diego, CA Conference Website Call for Research & Poster Presentations: 2026 49th Annual NRHA Rural Health Conference Deadline: Jan 15, 2026 National Rural Health Association Event Dates: May 19 - 22, 2026 San Diego, CA Conference Website |
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