“The Rural Health Transformation Fund was a last-minute addition to President Donald Trump’s summer budget bill that imposed Medicaid work requirements and cut upwards of $51 billion in funding to the commonwealth over the next decade. That new fund is worth roughly 37% of the estimated lost Medicaid funding in rural areas.
“Pennsylvania is home to the third-largest rural population in the country, and our rural communities face unique challenges when it comes to public health and access to health care. A strong, accessible, affordable health care system is the foundation of any healthy community, and health care is essential to the economic growth, population revitalization, and stabilization of our rural communities,” said Val Arkoosh, the state’s secretary of the Department of Human Services, in a release.
The 67-page application — released Thursday, which was also National Rural Health Day — requests up to $200 million in annual funding over the next five years, totaling $1 billion. Its six focuses include: technology and infrastructure, workforce, maternal health services, behavioral health services, aging and access, and emergency medical services and transportation. ”