Stakeholders fear rural patients, clinics unlikely to benefit from Rural Health Fund

Significant Rural Health Fund spending this year will go to large companies with the ability to increase rural healthcare facilities’ use of electronic health records, strengthen cybersecurity and improve state and health-system technology platforms instead of directly benefitting rural health facilities and patients, rural health facility stakeholders say. Many companies receiving funds already work with regional health systems and states through Medicaid contracting or mobile and telehealth operations. Clinics, home care agencies and nursing homes providing clinical care for rural patients are less involved in how to spend state money from the Rural Health Fund, advocates say. They fear remote health centers may lose services if they do not get a share of the funding but acknowledge they would benefit from technology upgrades. (KFF News article, 4/28/26)