News: HHS invests $60 million to improve rural community health care workforce and access to care

In a recent statement, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced nearly $60 million in investments to help rural communities get better access quality healthcare. Nearly $46 million of this comes from President Biden’s American Rescue Plan funding, which will support the expansion of healthcare capacity through job development, training, and placement in rural and tribal communities, Becker’s Hospital Review reported. This funding will go towards supporting front-line healthcare workers such as dental hygienists, medical and dental assistants, and community-based doulas.

Nearly $10 million is going towards supporting efforts to establish new medical residency programs in 13 different organizations, in the hopes of boosting the number of physicians training in rural settings. About $3 million will help 15 organizations in their efforts to improve patient outcomes, quality of care, and delivery of care throughout rural counties. Lastly, $1 million is going to three organizations to help improve rural veterans’ access to care.

“Among the most important steps we can take to improve access to health care in rural communities, including access to behavioral health care, is to invest in growing the rural health care workforce,” said Carole Johnson, administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration. “Today’s announcements are another important part of the Health Resources and Services Administration’s strategy to advance health equity for the nearly 65 million people who call rural areas home.”

Editor’s note: To read Becker’s Hospital Review’s coverage of this story, click here. To read the HHS announcement, click here.