North Dakota officials outline plan to use federal rural health transformation funding to bolster rural care

State health officials presented the state's application for the federal Rural Health Transformation Program and sketched how the Department of Health and Human Services would distribute and administer funds if North Dakota is awarded a grant.

The presentation to the Rural Health Transformation Committee on Dec. 1 was led by Sarah Aker, executive director of the Division of Medical Services at the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, who said the state submitted its application in early November and expects federal award decisions by Dec. 31. "We anticipate our award will be somewhere between $100 million and $200 million," Aker said, while noting the federal guidance asked states to plan for $200 million per year (about $1 billion over five years).

Why it matters: the federal funding is explicitly designed to enable states to invest in service delivery changes, workforce, data and technology with a priority on rural, frontier and tribal communities. Committee members pressed HHS on how quickly money could reach providers and on safeguards that will ensure sustainability after one-time investments.

HHS governance and award approach Aker said HHS will use an internal steering committee overseen by Commissioner Pat…