Biden-Harris administration action to improve the health of rural communities
By Patti Cullen, CAE | November 10, 2023 | All members
On November 3, 2023, the Biden-Harris administration announced the following actions they are taking to improve the health of rural communities and help rural healthcare providers stay open:
- Build on the Affordable Care Act and Inflation Reduction Act to increase access to affordable health coverage and care for those living in rural communities
- Keep more rural hospitals open in the long run to provide critical services in their communities
- Bolster the rural health workforce, including for primary care and behavioral health providers
- Support access to needed care such as behavioral health and through telehealth services
Some of the specific actions of interest to long-term care include the following:
- Supporting rural hospitals by helping them avoid closing their doors and instead converting to rural emergency hospitals. Eligible hospitals (critical access hospitals (CAHs) and small hospitals in rural areas) have a new option to convert to a rural emergency hospital (REH), a new Medicare provider type, to continue to provide emergency and outpatient care in their communities. CMS established an expedited process for these hospitals to convert to REHs. CMS has also finalized changes to the REH payment methodology for Tribal and Indian Health Services (IHS) operated REHs, to address certain barriers that may have discouraged Tribal and IHS operated hospitals from converting to REHs.
- The President’s FY2024 budget put forth several policies to support rural providers, including $30 million to provide technical assistance to rural hospitals at risk of closure and to support expansion of hospital services lines to meet rural communities’ needs, $13 million for rural healthcare workforce development and training programs, and nearly $45 million for services provided via telehealth. Recognizing that rural communities, which represent nearly 60% of mental health, health professional shortage areas, have higher rates of suicide, and high rates of overdose deaths and mental illness, the budget provides $10 million in dedicated funding for a new Rural Health Clinic Behavioral Health Initiative to expand access to behavioral health services in rural communities.
- Developing and investing in the nursing workforce. Nurses play a critical role in primary care, mental healthcare, and maternal healthcare, particularly in rural areas. HHS announced more than $100 million in awards to address the increasing demand for registered nurses, nurse practitioners, certified nurse midwives and nurse faculty nationwide.
- Improving access to high-speed internet. Internet access is important to accessing telehealth and the Biden-Harris Administration has committed to connecting everyone in the country to affordable, high-speed internet. Rural communities, including tribal communities, represent 93% of all locations unserved by affordable, high-speed internet across the country. President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provided $2 billion in funding, through the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program, to fill this infrastructure gap and aid adoption efforts to Tribes. This funding is in addition to $2 billion for ReConnect funding, a program for high-speed infrastructure projects on rural and tribal land. To further support access, IHS is partnering with digital navigators to come to local rural healthcare facilities to sign up tribal members for the Affordable Connectivity Program which provides a discount for internet bills.
View the full release on the actions
here.
Patti Cullen, CAE | President/CEO |
pcullen@careproviders.org | 952-851-2487