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​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Rural Health Transformation​

The Commonwealth of Kentucky has been awarded funding through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Rural Health Transformation Fund (RHTF).  This investment will empower Kentucky to launch and implement its Rural Health Transformation Plan (RHTP) — a community-driven strategy to expand access and improve health outcomes for rural residents across the Commonwealth.

Our Plan

Kentucky’s RHTP launches five interrelated initiatives designed to build rural health infrastructure and provide sustainable, long-term improvements. This plan directly supports Kentucky’s rural counties while advancing statewide impact through innovation, technology-enabled care and strengthened workforce recruitment pipelines for both clinical and non-clinical staff. This strategy will help build a resilient, integrated and technology-forward health system across the Commonwealth.​

  1. Rural Community Hubs for Chronic Care Innovation: Establishes local “hub-and-spoke” collaboratives focused on obesity and diabetes prevention and management. These hubs will integrate nutrition, physical activity programs and digital self-management tools.

  2. PoWERing Maternal and Infant Health: Expands timely prenatal and postpartum care by deploying telehealth-enabled maternal care teams who will serve maternity-care deserts and high-risk regions, to help mothers and infants receive seamless, high-quality support.

  3. Rapid Response to Recovery (EmPATH Model): Deploys technology-enabled crisis stabilization and mobile behavioral health response teams to connect individuals with community-based treatment and recovery supports.​

  4. Rooted in Health: Rural Dental Access: Increases access to preventive oral health services through expanded dental hygiene training programs, externships and portable/tele-dental clinics.

  5. ​Crisis to Care: Integrated Emergency Medical Services (EMS)  Response and Coordination: Enhances pre-hospital capacity and trauma coordination through treat-in-place protocols, improved data connectivity and workforce training for rural EMS providers.

About the Program

​The RHTF grant spans five budget periods aligned with federal fiscal years (FY2026–FY2030). Funding is disbursed annually by CMS based on achievement of performance metrics. View the Notice of Funding Opportunity from CMS.​


  • The Commonwealth of Kentucky is the 10th most rural state in the country, with 1.87 million individuals(41.6%) of its total state population residing in a rural area as defined by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Kentucky’s RHTP strategies target five critical rural health priority areas that disproportionately affect rural Kentuckians: 
    • Chronic disease: Seventeen percent of Kentuckians live with multiple chronic conditions, compared with 11% nationally. 
    • Maternal health: One in six women of childbearing age lives in a maternity care desert, over four times the national average. 
    • Behavioral health: Crisis response often falls to first responders and emergency departments, since many rural health areas lack sufficient mental health professionals. 
    • Oral health: Appalachian counties have among the lowest dental visit rates and the highest rates of complete tooth loss among seniors.
    • Emergency and trauma systems: Nearly half of all paramedics are concentrated in the state’s five largest counties, leaving many rural areas without timely response capacity.​
  • CMS released Notice of Funding Opportunity​: September 15, 2025. 
  • Application due: November 5, 2025. 
  • Awards announced: December 31, 2025.
  • Program begins: Quarter 1 of 2026.

  • ​Rural Health Transformation will be guided by an interdisciplinary A3 Team (Aspire → Activate → Attain) within the Kentucky Department for Public Health, supported by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services agencies and external partners. The A3 Team will coordinate planning, financial oversight, and performance management to ensure alignment across CHFS and community providers. This approach emphasizes accountability, rapid-cycle learning, and local flexibility, allowing communities to adapt models to their specific needs while advancing statewide goals.

  • ​Public input was critical to shaping Kentucky’s RHTP application. Thank you to those who responded to our statewide rural health Request for Information (RFI). We look forward to continued stakeholder engagement throughout the lifecycle of this program, which aims to center rural voices and community-based solutions. 

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