CMS Connecting Kids to Coverage
Deadline: March 7
Connecting Kids to Coverage (CKC) outreach and enrollment grants support activities aimed at identifying and enrolling children who are eligible for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Along with the Connecting Kids to Coverage National Campaign, these activities fund outreach and enrollment strategies aimed at educating families about the availability of Medicaid and CHIP and directly assisting families with the application and renewal process. The grants share the common goal to help reduce the number of children who are eligible for Medicaid and CHIP but are not enrolled.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will award a total of $66.3 million in grants and cooperative agreements to educate families about the availability of free or low-cost health coverage under Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Eligibility includes State, local, and Tribal governments; Federal health safety net organizations; nonprofits and faith-based organizations; and elementary or secondary schools.
Questions? Contact HealthyKids@cms.hhs.gov.
HRSA Rural Residency Planning and Development (RRPD) Program
Deadline: April 10
The Rural Residency Planning and Development (RRPD) program goal is to improve and expand access to health care in rural areas by developing new sustainable rural residency programs, including rural track programs (RTPs). These residency programs must achieve accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). Newly created rural residency programs will increase the number of future physicians training in rural areas, and ultimately the number of physicians practicing in rural areas, with the goal of addressing the physician workforce shortages in rural communities.
The RRPD program provides start-up funding to create new rural residency programs in qualifying medical specialties that will be sustainable long-term through viable and stable funding mechanisms, such as Medicare, Medicaid, and other public or private funding sources. Qualifying medical specialties are family medicine, internal medicine, preventive medicine, psychiatry, general surgery, and obstetrics and gynecology.
Questions? Contact Jason Steele at (301)443-2203 or email ruralresidency@hrsa.gov.
HRSA Rural Communities Opioid Response Program - Pathways
Deadline: April 14
The Rural Communities Opioid Response Program - Pathways creates innovative new youth-focused behavioral health care support programs while also offering behavioral health care career pathway opportunities in rural communities. Award recipients will establish and work within a network of organizations to engage youth in developing and implementing behavioral health care support programming. Through these efforts, RCORP-Pathways will improve behavioral health care in rural areas.
Goal 1: Pathway: Establish pathway programs to introduce youth to behavioral health careers and facilitate admittance into formalized training programs.
Goal 2: Engagement: Engage youth to develop and implement peer-driven behavioral health programming in rural communities.
Goal 3: Sustainability: Develop innovative, multi-sectoral approaches to ensure the continued availability of RCORP-Pathways supported activities in the target rural service area.
Questions? Contact Caitlin Dunn at (301)480-9743 or email ruralopioidresponse@hrsa.gov.
HRSA Rural Program of All-Inclusive for the Elderly (PACE) Planning and Development
Deadline: April 17
The Rural Program of All-Inclusive for the Elderly (PACE) Planning and Development, a new program from HRSA's Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP), is open and accepting applications for the program’s 4-year period of performance (September 30, 2025 - September 29, 2029). HRSA will make up to 4 awards, up to $500,000 per year, to provide resources to assist with the development of an initial Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) PACE program serving HRSA-designated rural areas or to expand existing certified CMS PACE programs into HRSA-designated rural areas through PACE service area expansion. The goal of the program aims to improve access to, and delivery of, comprehensive and sustainable medical and social services for adults 55 and older living in rural areas.
Eligible applicants include all domestic public and private, nonprofit, or for-profit entities with demonstrated experience serving, or the capacity to serve, rural underserved populations.
Questions? Contact Katy Lloyd at (301)443-2933 or klloyd@hrsa.gov.
HRSA Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies Program (Rural MOMS)
Deadline: April 22
The Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies (Rural MOMS) Program from HRSA's Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) is open and accepting applications for the program’s 4-year period of performance (September 30, 2025 - September 29, 2029). HRSA will award up to 3 cooperative agreements for up to $1,000,000 per year, to provide support to establish innovative, collaborative rural obstetric networks to improve maternity care and access to care in rural communities.
Rural MOMS funds networks that establish or continue collaborative improvement and innovative models that can provide long-term sustainable and financially viable service delivery to improve maternal and infant health outcomes. The work of these networks supports the goal of the program to improve maternal and infant health outcomes and access to and delivery of maternity and obstetrics care in rural areas and reduce preventable maternal mortality risks and decrease severe maternal morbidity in rural areas.
Eligible applicants include all domestic public or private, non-profit, or for-profit entities providing prenatal care, labor care, birthing, and postpartum care services in rural areas, frontier areas, or medically underserved areas, or to medically underserved populations or Indian Tribes or Tribal organizations.
Questions? Contact Victoria Tsai at (301)443-0835 or email RMOMS@hrsa.gov.
Emergency Preparedness Workshop
Please join us for the Practical Strategies for Emergency Preparedness and Response in Health Care Facilities one-day workshop, where you will gain practical strategies and insights to enhance your facility’s preparedness and response capabilities for all types of hazards. Designed for both newcomers and those experienced in health care emergency preparedness, Plan, Prepare, Act combines didactic lectures, interactive activities and discussions, and realistic scenarios to provide practical skills and knowledge.
You will explore challenges and best practices in incident management, continuous program management, and regionwide coordination, all while engaging with peers in collaborative learning. The workshop offers practical tools based on national frameworks and guidelines, including CMS emergency preparedness requirements outlined in Appendix Z. By the end of the day, you’ll be prepared to apply these concepts to your own facility, enhancing your preparedness and planning activities.
This workshop is for those responsible for emergency preparedness at long-term care facilities, skilled nursing facilities, and assisted living facilities including:
- Emergency preparedness coordinators
- Emergency management program leads
- Others such as facilities management staff, administrative and support staff, and clinicians
In-person workshop dates:
- Tuesday, March 25 - Mankato
- Tuesday, April 8 - St. Cloud
ICD-11 Training
The Minnesota Small Rural Hospital Improvement Program (SHIP) is collaborating with ArchProCoding to provide an ICD-11 coding readiness overview training on April 1 from 12:00-1:00 pm.
The training is free to all SHIP participants and will be presented virtually. You can register at Minnesota ICD-11 Coding Readiness Overview for Minnesota SHIP Hospitals April 1, 2025.
Critical Access Hospital Financial Sustainability Guide
The Critical Access Hospital Financial Sustainability Guide from the National Rural Health Resource Center provides guidance and assistance to state Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility (Flex) Program personnel, leaders of Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), and others helping CAHs manage long-term financial stability.
USDA/NRHA Rural Hospital Technical Assistance
Through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the National Rural Health Association (NRHA) supports technical assistance for rural hospitals to identify and address local health care needs and strengthen health care systems. The overall goal of the program is to enhance hospital systems for improved efficiency and financial performance, bolster quality of care, and support communities.
2025 NOSORH Rural Health Grant Writing Institute
The NOSORH Rural Health Grant Writing Institute was developed to meet the unique needs of rural grant writers. Through nine engaging sessions, participants will gain the skills and strategies needed to write successful grants, including documenting needs, crafting budgets, developing evaluations and work plans, and finding the right funding opportunities. With an emphasis on federal funding – particularly rural-focused opportunities from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) – this Institute equips participants with the knowledge to navigate complex grant applications and secure critical resources for their communities. Take the next step in advancing your grant writing skills and driving meaningful change in rural health.
Intended Audience: State Offices of Rural Health staff and rural health stakeholders, such as Critical Access Hospitals, Rural Health Clinics, Free Clinics, Federally Qualified Health Centers, health departments, and community-based organizations.
The nine-session Institute runs from April 7 to May 5. Virtual learning sessions will occur on Mondays and Wednesdays from 2:00 to 3:30 pm.
Register for the Rural Health Grant Writing Institute by March 21.
The course fee of $1,000 is due by April 7. Credit card payments are accepted. If you are unable to pay by the deadline or require specialized billing arrangements, please contact Kayren Cross at kayrenc@nosorh.org or (888)391-7258, ext. 108.
If you have questions about this Institute, please contact Cate Visser, NOSORH Applications Manager, at catev@nosorh.org.
RHIhub Podcast: Exploring Rural Health
Exploring Rural Health is a monthly podcast from the Rural Health Information Hub featuring leaders and experts working to address current issues in rural health care and population health.
An interview with Carrie Henning-Smith, Co-Director of the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center, aired on January 7. In this episode, learn about the prevalence of and difficulties caused by medical debt for both rural patients and providers.
Medical Debt and Its Impact on Rural Patients and Providers, with Carrie Henning-Smith
Listen to this episode now on PodBean.
New study examines barriers to obtaining mental health licensure
The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Center for Rural Behavioral Health at Minnesota State University, Mankato and Wilder Research released a new study recently about the barriers mental health providers face during the licensure process. Licensure challenges threaten to exacerbate a severe shortage of mental health providers in Minnesota and the ability to meet demand for services, and this is one of the first studies to specifically examine barriers to the licensure process.
The report, Unfinished Business: Examining Barriers to Obtaining Mental Health Licensure Among Minnesota Graduates, identifies challenges related to:
- Financial strains
- Burdensome application and administrative processes
- Strict requirements
- Misalignment between licensure types and between states
- Lack of attention to work well-being, diversity and equity concerns
- Supervision quality
- Exams that ineffectively assess knowledge and skills
The report identifies several recommendations for licensure boards and regulatory agencies, insurance payers, employers, and graduate programs, including:
- Increase reimbursement rates and reduce or eliminate licensure application, renewal, and exam fees
- Reduce tuition and create new opportunities for student loan forgiveness
- Provide one-on-one assistance to graduates throughout the licensure process and more resources to help graduates find and select a qualified supervisor and prepare for exams
- Streamline the application process and increase flexibility of licensure requirements
- Increase alignment between licensure types and allow licensure portability between states
- Minimize administrative tasks and paperwork and ensure reasonable caseload expectations
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