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October 16, 2026
What's New
CDC Reports on Urban-Rural Differences in Youth Substance Use. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) uses data from the national Youth Risk Behavior Survey – given to a cross section of grade 9-12 students in public, private, and parochial schools – to better understand patterns of substance use and implement effective public health responses. Published in an October 15 supplemental edition of the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the report describes patterns of substance use among U.S. high school students and examines differences by sex, race and ethnicity, grade, and urban-rural classification.
Screening for Cancer in Rural Areas. New research supported by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health claims findings with important implications for cancer prevention and policy. Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, researchers at the University of Utah studied rural-urban variations in risk behaviors for three types of cancer – colorectal, cervical, and breast – along with neighborhood-level trends in screening and socioeconomic deprivation. In addition to known factors that contribute to consistently higher rates of preventable cancer in rural areas, the researchers found variations in screening not captured by traditional rural-urban classifications, particularly for colorectal cancer. The differences suggest cancer interventions should prioritize disadvantaged communities, particularly in the West.
Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education Program: Academic Year 2024-2025. HRSA’s National Center for Health Workforce Analysis issued a data brief that summarizes outcomes of grantee programs and residents who received Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (TCHGME) support during the 2024-2025 academic year. The data include number of disadvantaged or rural residents, and percentages of THCGME clinical training site settings, with breakdowns by rural area and medically underserved communities.
Funding and Opportunities
DOJ 2026 Mentoring for Youth Impacted by Opioid and Other Substance Use – November 16. Administered by the Office of Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention at the U.S. Department of Justice, this funding opportunity supports high-quality mentoring services for youth who are currently using or dependent on substances, as well as youth at risk of substance use or who have close family members experiencing substance use or dependency. Mentoring services may include one-on-one, group, or peer mentoring—or a combination of these approaches or hybrid (traditional in-person combined with virtual mentoring).
Indian Health Service Loan Repayment Program – August 15, 2027. The IHS provides loan repayment for undergraduate and graduate health professional educational loans in return for full-time clinical service in Indian Health Service programs.
AHRQ TeamSTEPPS Training to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety – Ongoing. TeamSTEPPS - which stands for Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety - is an evidence-based system developed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to optimize patient outcomes by improving communication and teamwork skills among healthcare professionals, staff, patients, and caregivers. AHRQ offers no-cost, on-demand training with five curriculum modules:
- Communication
- Team leadership
- Situation monitoring
- Mutual support
- Implementation of TeamSTEPPS 3.0
EPA Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act Program – Ongoing. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provides secured, direct loans and loan guarantees for eligible water infrastructure projects. In addition, technical assistance may be provided to prospective borrowers, especially small and rural communities.
Policy Updates
Send questions to ruralpolicy@hrsa.gov.
CMS Releases List of Participant Hospitals in CJR-X – Released October 6. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released the list of hospitals that are required to participate in Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement-X, a mandatory payment model for hospitals that perform lower extremity joint replacements for beneficiaries enrolled in Original Medicare. CJR-X was finalized in the Fiscal Year 2027 Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems (IPPS) Final Rule and will be mandatory nationwide beginning January 1, 2028. Critical Access and Rural Emergency Hospitals are exempt, while participating rural PPS facilities are safeguarded by a 5% risk cap (compared to the standard 20% cap for most other participants). Selected hospitals should fill out the CJR-X Primary Point of Contact Identification Form for further communication from CMS.
SAMHSA Requests Feedback on Survey of Mental Health Treatment Facilities – Comment by December 7. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is seeking comments on proposed revisions to the National Substance Use and Mental Health Services Survey, an annual collection of information about the locations and characteristics of substance use and mental health treatment services. Participation is voluntary and some information collected for the survey is published in SAMHSA’s FindTreatment.gov. Proposed changes include replacing the questionnaire’s content on crisis services and faith-based organizations with a new series of questions about mobile crisis, community outreach, behavioral health emergency, and crisis stabilization services.
Resource of the Week
Funded! Now What? A Guide for Newly Funded Health Centers. The National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) provides this step-by-step guide for recently awarded grantees of New Access Point (NAP) funding from HRSA under the Section 330 Health Center Program. Specifically, a NAP award provides federal funding to an organization to:
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Establish a new health center (a “new start”) to provide comprehensive primary and preventive care to rural and underserved populations;
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Expand care by an existing HRSA-funded health center by opening a new satellite site in a high-need area; or
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Transition an existing “Look-Alike” health center (an organization that meets all federal health center requirements but previously lacked Section 330 grant funding) into a fully funded award recipient.
Organizations that are considering HRSA’s Health Center Program can get a better understanding of the requirements and expectation from these guidelines covering compliance, operations, workforce, quality, governance, finance, and reporting. Read the latest press release on New Access Point funding: https://www.hhs.gov/press-room/hhs-invests-102-million-expand-health-centers-primary-care.html
Approaching Deadlines
HRSA FY 2027 Health Center Program Service Area Competition – October 19
AmeriCorps Seniors Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) – October 20
NIH Intervention Research to Improve Native American Health (R01 and R34 Clinical Trials Optional) – October 21
U.S. Department of Justice Rural Violent Crime Reduction Initiative – October 30
Request for Information: NTIA’s 2027 Internet Use Survey – Comment by November 9
Community Development Financial Institutions Fund New Markets Tax Credit Program (NMTC) – November 10
SAMHSA Requests Feedback on Survey of Mental Health Treatment Facilities – Comment by December 7
DOJ 2026 Mentoring for Youth Impacted by Opioid and Other Substance Use – November 16
CDC Request for Information: Data Intermediaries to Strengthen Public Health – Comment by November 20
CMS Temporarily Pauses New Agent and Broker Registrations for Marketplaces – Comment by November 21
CMS Seeks Input on Medicare Part D Pharmacy Contracting Standards – Comment by November 23
Medicare Open Enrollment Runs October 15 – December 7
SAMHSA Requests Feedback on Survey of Mental Health Treatment Facilities – Comment by December 7
USDA Tribal Colleges Research Grants Program – December 31
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: Physical Therapy Telehealth Research Study for Older Veterans – Recruiting Through the End of 2026
NIH Advancing Healthcare for Older Adults from Populations that Experience Health Disparities (R01 - Clinical Trial Optional) – January 8
AmeriCorps State and National Grants – January 13, 2027
CMS Student Loan Repayment for Nursing Home Staff – Coming Soon
HRSA National Health Service Corps Student to Service Loan Repayment Program – Coming Soon
Ongoing Opportunities - Updated September 2026
Bold indicates HRSA- and/or FORHP-funded opportunities.
Administration for Children & Families: Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
AHRQ TeamSTEPPS Training to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety
Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency – Rural Emergency Medical Communications Demonstration Project
Delta Region Community Health Systems Development Program
EPA Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act Program
General Services Administration: Federal Surplus Property Available for Public Use
HRSA Needs Rural Reviewers for Grant Applications
HRSA National Health Service Corps Medications for Opioid Use Disorder Training
HRSA Look-Alike Initial Designation for the Health Center Program
Indian Health Service/Department of Defense: Medical Supplies and Equipment for Tribes (Project TRANSAM)
Indian Health Service Loan Repayment Program – August 15, 2027
Licensure Portability: The Multi-Discipline Licensure Resource Project
National Rural Health Association: USDA Rural Hospital Technical Assistance
National Rural Health Resource Center: Rural Hospital Stabilization Program
ProviderBridge: Mobilizing Health Care Workforce via Telehealth
Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project
Rural Graduate Medical Education Planning and Development
Small Business Administration Rural Businesses
Small Business Administration Guaranteed Loans for Small Business
Targeted Technical Assistance for Rural Hospitals Program
USDA: National School Lunch Afterschool Snack Program
USDA: Summer Food Service Program
USDA Rural Development: America’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative
USDA Rural Development: Circuit Rider Program – Technical Assistance for Rural Water Systems
USDA Rural Development: Community Facilities Programs
USDA Rural Development: Emergency Community Water Assistance Grants
USDA Rural Development: Grants for Rural and Native Alaskan Villages
USDA Rural Development: Intermediary Relending Program – Ongoing with deadlines every quarter
USDA Rural Development: Multifamily Housing Loan Guarantees
USDA Rural Development: Rural Business Investment Program
USDA Rural Development: Rural Energy Savings Program
USDA Rural Development: SEARCH – Special Evaluation Assistance for Rural Communities and Households (for Water/Waste Projects)
USDA Rural Development: Telecommunications Infrastructure Loans and Loan Guarantees
U.S. Department of Transportation: Rural Opportunities to Use Transportation for Economic Success (ROUTES)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Real Water Technical Assistance (RealWaterTA)
University of Vermont Center on Rural Addiction Contingency Management Certificate Course
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