![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/missouriindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/hospitalbed-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Missouri proposed in its funding application to establish 30 community hubs to identify local health needs across 104 counties, help rural medical facilities make urgent repairs and expand services such as obstetrics, ease data sharing among providers and overhaul the state’s Medicaid payment system (Thomas Barwick\/Getty Images).<\/p>\n
Missouri has been awarded $216.3 million in federal funding to improve rural health, according to a Monday <\/span>press release<\/span><\/a> from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid.<\/span><\/p>\n The funding \u2014 the ninth-largest amount awarded to any state \u2014 is the first of a potential five years of support for Missouri through the federal Rural Health Transformation Program.<\/span><\/p>\n Each year between 2026 and 2030, the $50 billion program will disburse $5 billion equally to approved states. The allocations from another $5 billion annually will depend partly on reviewers\u2019 assessment of states\u2019 applications and partly on yearly progress.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n U.S. lawmakers <\/span>portrayed<\/span><\/a> the federal program, approved by Congress this summer as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, as a counterweight to the federal law\u2019s deep cuts to Medicaid. But the program will offset less than a third of an anticipated $137 billion loss of Medicaid spending in rural areas over the next decade, according to the nonpartisan health care research organization <\/span>KFF<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Missouri hopes federal funds can ease strain on rural hospitals amid looming Medicaid cuts<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Jess Bax, director of the Missouri Department of Social Services, said in a <\/span>press release<\/span><\/a> from Gov. Mike Kehoe\u2019s office Monday that the funding could \u201cchange the <\/span>landscape of healthcare access and outcomes for our rural communities.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cBy addressing longstanding health disparities affecting rural residents through these locally driven solutions,\u201d Bax said, \u201cwe are helping rural providers build capacity, modernize services, and better meet the needs of Missouri patients.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Missouri\u2019s <\/span>application<\/span><\/a> proposes to establish 30 community hubs across 104 counties to help hospitals, clinics and community organizations identify local priorities and coordinate care. This part of the application builds on a pilot program, launched in 2024, that put six rural hospitals in charge of hubs.<\/span><\/p>\n Some health care advocates and rural medical providers familiar with that pilot, called ToRCH, or Transformation of Rural Community Health, told <\/span>The Independent<\/span> it allowed hospitals to partner with community organizations to use Medicaid funding to address underlying causes of illness.<\/span><\/p>\n State lawmakers put $15 million into the program during the 2023 legislative session and have made that an ongoing appropriation, though only about $8 million had been used by the end of fiscal year 2025.<\/span><\/p>\n Next steps include finalizing the state\u2019s agreement with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid and putting funding in motion for \u201c<\/span>hub activation, workforce initiatives and tech procurement,\u201d according to a <\/span>press release<\/span><\/a> from the Missouri Hospital Association.<\/span><\/p>\n Though Missouri was given a relatively large award, it ranked 36th for the amount of funding allotted per rural resident, at $115.09 per person, according to an <\/span>analysis<\/span><\/a> by Timothy McBride, a health economist at Washington University in St. Louis. While Texas was awarded the most funding, with $281.3 million, it got the least money per rural resident, at $59.29 per person.<\/span><\/p>\n The funding formula for the program took into account factors including the size of a state\u2019s rural population, the number of rural care facilities and uncompensated care as a percent of hospital expenses.<\/span><\/p>\n Missouri\u2019s application includes plans to overhaul the state\u2019s Medicaid payment system, rewarding healthy outcomes rather than the volume of services provided.<\/span><\/p>\n The press release from the governor\u2019s office named MO HealthNet, which runs the state\u2019s Medicaid program, as the recipient of the federal funding. It said the division of the state\u2019s social services department \u201cis leading Missouri\u2019s efforts to <\/span>increase access to care, improve quality, enhance care coordination, and incentivize long-term sustainability.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe primary goal of Missouri\u2019s plan is to revamp the Medicaid payment system to guarantee the effective use of taxpayer dollars,\u201d said Baylee Watts, spokesperson for the social services department, in a Dec. 9 email to The Independent.<\/span><\/p>\n Health care experts and providers said that while they welcome federal investments in the long-term sustainability of rural health care, they worry rural hospitals won\u2019t survive revenue losses from an increase in uninsured patients thanks to the federal law.<\/span><\/p>\n Rural hospitals run on tight margins, partly because they have high overhead costs but deliver lower volumes of payable services than urban providers.<\/span><\/p>\n Lori Wightman, CEO of Bothwell Regional Health Center in Sedalia, said on Dec. 16 that the hospital, one of the participants in the pilot program, had only 14 days of cash on hand. And, she said, the hospital needs a new roof.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEvery time it rains a lot, we get a certain leak in our operating room and then just shut down two rooms,\u201d Wightman said. \u201cAnd paying for a new roof is not the sexiest, but it\u2019s absolutely needed to keep access in our town.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Grants to allow providers to repair critical infrastructure and add high-demand services are some of the first planned actions with the funding, according to Missouri\u2019s application.<\/span><\/p>\n The state aims to award 10 grants in 2026 for hospital infrastructure projects and three grants to introduce services like oncology or obstetric surgery.<\/span><\/p>\n Also on the agenda for 2026, according to the application, are tech contracts and staffing for a new Rural Health Transformation Office.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The state plans to hire more than 100 people, assigning about 90 to run community hubs and 20-25 to seven \u201cregional coordinating networks.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The largest single item in Missouri\u2019s application is for a \u201cdigital backbone\u201d to share and track data, accounting for over a third of the state\u2019s nearly $1 billion request at $364 million. As part of this digital backbone, the state plans to create a platform to allow medical providers and community organizations to share and follow up on referrals \u2014 including for non-medical services to keep people healthy, like food assistance.<\/span><\/p>\n Kehoe, in his press release, highlighted the state\u2019s support for community organizations in Missouri\u2019s project.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Through Missouri\u2019s Rural Health Transformation plan,\u201d Kehoe said, \u201cwe are supporting local partners who understand their communities and are positioned to deliver meaningful, lasting impact for future generations of Missourians.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n
\n\n <\/i>\n\n