Maine's Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP)

Maine's Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) is sponsored by Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). This program aims to help eligible health care providers replace, upgrade, and enhance electronic medical record (EMR) systems to better serve rural communities.

Rural Health Transformation Program | Department of Health and Human Services Behavioral Health Resources for Those Affected by the Violence in Lewiston Rural Health Transformation Program Rural Health Transformation Program Strengthening Rural Health Care Across Maine Maine’s Rural Health Transformation Program is a five-year federal grant program designed to improve health outcomes, expand patient access to care, strengthen the health care workforce, advance innovation, and support sustainable rural health systems.

Supported by an initial $190 million (Year 1) federal investment, the Program will help Maine’s rural communities, providers, and partners implement solutions that improve care today while building a stronger health system for the future. Why Rural Health Transformation Matters More than 690,000 Mainers live in rural communities. Rural residents experience higher rates of chronic disease and behavioral health challenges.

Many Maine communities face shortages of health care providers. Access to care can be limited by geography, transportation, and workforce constraints. Rural hospitals and providers face significant financial pressures.

Maine’s Rural Health Transformation Program is designed to address these challenges and improve health outcomes across Maine. Geography does not determine health outcomes. Rural Mainers can access quality care when and where they need it.

Maine’s rural health system is strong, resilient, and sustainable for future generations. What is the Rural Health Transformation Program? The Rural Health Transformation Program is a five-year federal grant program designed to strengthen rural health care systems and improve health outcomes in communities across all 50 states.

Maine’s program focuses on strategic investments that support Maine patients, providers, communities, and health care workforce.

Maine’s Five Strategic Initiatives Maine’s Rural Health Transformation Program is organized around five strategic initiatives designed to improve health outcomes, strengthen the rural health workforce, continue the modernization of care delivery, expand access to services, and support the long-term sustainability of the state’s rural health system.

Together, these initiatives guide investments and activities that will benefit rural communities across Maine. Summary: Improve the health and well-being of rural Mainers by expanding access to preventive, primary, specialty, behavioral health, and chronic disease services closer to home.

This initiative focuses on helping people stay healthy, managing health conditions earlier, and addressing root causes of health disparities through community-based care models and evidence-based interventions.

Expand access to preventive and primary care services Increase availability of behavioral health and substance use treatment Support healthy lifestyles and chronic disease management Strengthen community-based care models Improve health outcomes through evidence-based practices Summary: Strengthen Maine’s rural health workforce by expanding recruitment, retention, training, and career pathways for health professionals.

This initiative supports the development of a sustainable workforce pipeline while helping providers practice at the top of their license and serve rural communities more effectively.

Recruit and retain health care professionals in rural communities Expand education, training, and clinical placement opportunities Strengthen local workforce pipelines Support career advancement and professional development Improve workforce data and planning capabilities Summary: Modernize rural health care delivery through technology that improves access, coordination, and efficiency.

This initiative supports telehealth, health information exchange, digital health tools, electronic medical record modernization, and the responsible adoption of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence.

Expand telehealth and virtual care services Improve health information sharing and interoperability Modernize electronic medical record systems Increase access to consumer-facing digital health tools Support responsible adoption of artificial intelligence and innovation Summary: Reduce barriers that prevent rural Mainers from obtaining timely and affordable health care.

This initiative focuses on strengthening access to services through support for provider enrollment, transportation solutions, improved technology, and investments that help ensure essential health services remain available in rural communities.

Reduce transportation-related barriers Improve access to affordable coverage options Modernize systems that connect providers and patients to care Sustainable Rural Health Ecosystems Summary: Strengthen the long-term sustainability and resilience of Maine’s rural health system through regional collaboration, financial stabilization, operational improvement, and innovative payment models.

This initiative helps ensure rural communities continue to have access to essential health services for years to come.

Improve the sustainability of rural health providers Support regional planning and collaboration Advance innovative payment and delivery models Strengthen health system infrastructure and operations Build sustainable systems that endure beyond RHTP funding $30 million for electronic medical record (EMR) modernization and interoperability $28.

5 million to support the transition to alternative payment models (APMs) $30 million to improve hospital efficiency, financial stability, and long-term sustainability The first provider funding opportunity is now available. Approximately $30 million in Year 1 funding will support eligible health care providers to replace, upgrade, and enhance electronic medical record (EMR) systems to better serve rural communities.

The application portal is hosted by MCD Global Health, a contracted partner supporting Maine’s Rural Health Transformation Program. Learn more in the State's press release and on the MCD RHTP website . Total funding for the RHTP is $50 billion nationally, to be allocated to approved States over five fiscal years, with $10 billion of funding available each fiscal year, beginning in fiscal year 2026 and ending in fiscal year 2030.

The funding will be distributed by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as follows: 50% to be distributed equally amongst all States with a CMS-approved RHTP plan. 50% will be allocated by CMS to a subset of states based on a variety of factors including rural population, the proportion of rural health facilities in the state, the situation of certain hospitals in the state, and other factors to be specified by CMS.

To qualify for RHTP funding, the State of Maine addressed specific components required by the federal law, including how Maine's RHTP plan will: Improve access to hospitals, other health care providers, and health care items and services provided to rural residents Improve health care outcomes of rural residents Prioritize the use of new and emerging technologies that emphasize prevention and chronic disease management Initiate, foster, and strengthen local and regional strategic partnerships between rural hospitals, and other health care providers to promote measurable quality improvement, increase financial stability, maximize economies of scale, and share best practices in care delivery Enhance economic opportunity for, and the supply of, health care clinicians through enhanced recruitment and training Prioritize data- and technology-driven solutions that help rural hospitals and other rural health care providers provide high-quality health care services as close to a person's home as is possible Outline strategies to manage long-term financial solvency and operating models of rural hospitals in the state Identify specific causes that drive the increased rate of stand-alone rural hospitals becoming at risk of closure, conversion, or service reduction States must also commit to using RHTP funds to support three or more of the following 10 allowable activities: Promoting evidence-based, measurable interventions to improve prevention and chronic disease management.

Providing payments to health care providers for the provision of health care items or services, as specified by the CMS Administrator. Promoting consumer-facing, technology-driven solutions for the prevention and management of chronic diseases.

Providing training and technical assistance for the development and adoption of technology-enabled solutions that improve care delivery in rural hospitals, including remote monitoring, robotics, artificial intelligence, and other advanced technologies. Recruiting and retaining clinical workforce talent to rural areas, with commitments to serve rural communities for a minimum of five years.

Providing technical assistance, software, and hardware for significant information technology advances designed to improve efficiency, enhance cybersecurity capability development, and improve patient health outcomes.

Assisting rural communities to right-size their health care delivery systems by identifying needed preventative, ambulatory, pre-hospital, emergency, acute inpatient care, outpatient care, and post-acute care service lines. Supporting access to opioid use disorder treatment services, other substance use disorder treatment services, and mental health services.

Developing projects that support innovative models of care that include value-based care arrangements and alternative payment models, as appropriate. Additional uses designed to promote sustainable access to high-quality rural health care services, as determined by the CMS Administrator.

Additionally, CMS has identified the following strategic goals for the RHTP: Make rural America healthy again : Support rural health innovations and new access points to promote preventative health and address root causes of diseases. Projects will use evidence-based, outcomes-driven interventions to improve disease prevention, chronic disease management, behavioral health, and prenatal care.

Sustainable access : Help rural providers become long-term access points for care by improving efficiency and sustainability. With RHTP support, rural facilities work together--or with high-quality regional systems--to share or coordinate operations, technology, primary and specialty care, and emergency services.

Workforce development : Attract and retain a high-skilled health care workforce by strengthening recruitment and retention of healthcare providers in rural communities. Help rural providers practice at the top of their license and develop a broader set of providers to serve a rural community's needs, such as community health workers, pharmacists, and individuals trained to help patients navigate the healthcare system.

Innovative care : Spark the growth of innovative care models to improve health outcomes, coordinate care, and promote flexible care arrangements. Develop and implement payment mechanisms incentivizing providers or Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) to reduce health care costs, improve quality of care, and shift care to lower cost settings.

Technology innovation : Foster use of innovative technologies that promote efficient care delivery, data security, and access to digital health tools by rural facilities, providers, and patients. Projects support access to remote care, improve data sharing, strengthen cybersecurity, and invest in emerging technologies.

Maine’s Rural Health Transformation Program Advisory Committee brings together providers, community organizations, Tribal partners, employers, educators, and other partners to help guide program implementation. The Committee provides input on priorities, implementation strategies, and opportunities to strengthen rural health across Maine.

Once confirmed, the date, time, and link to attend the next Advisory Committee Meeting* will be posted here. *Members of the public are welcome to attend Advisory Committee meetings in listen-mode; public comment will not be taken. This program is supported by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $190,008,051.

09 with 100 percent funded by CMS/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by CMS/HHS, or the U.S. Government.

Maine DHHS Announces $30M to Modernize Electronic Medical Record Systems Governor Mills Statement on Rural Health Transformation Program Award CMS announces State award decisions State launches robust public engagement process State files application for the RHTP Maine RHTP Project Narrative H. R.

1 Budget Reconciliation Bill – federal bill text Rural Health Transformation Program – CMS program website Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Public Webinar Slides - Sept 2025 (PDF) Public Webinar Slides - March 2026 (PDF) July 4, 2025 : H. R.

1 budget reconciliation bill signed, appropriating $50 billion in funding for the RHTP over five years September 15, 2025 : CMS releases RHTP funding application (Notice of Funding Opportunity) for states September 17, 2025 : Public input process opens October 1 : Public comment through website closes Nov.

5, 2025 : State applications due to CMS December 29, 2025: CMS announces State award decisions 2026 onward : CMS provides continuous monitoring and support to states