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Colorado Rural Health Transformation Program

The Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) was authorized by H.R. 1 Section 71401 of Public Law 119-21, to provide grants totaling $50 billion in federal funds from Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2026 through FFY 2030 ($10 billion per year) to States (territories and Washington D.C. are excluded). The program will be administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and requires each state to submit an application and include a “rural health transformation plan” to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Awards will be announced no later than December 31, 2025, with funding to states in early 2026. These grants are federal funds only; states will not be required to provide matching funds to draw down these Rural Health Transformation federal funds.

(NEW) RHTP Advisory Committee Plan Finalized, Apply by Feb 16! 

In December and January, HCPF worked with potential grantees, community partners to develop the Advisory Committee structure for the RHTP grant.
In the overview of the Committee, it outlines that (the RHTP Advisory Committee will advise HCPF on the application process, funding priorities, and public-facing materials, provide input on program developments and CMS negotiations, and offer recommendations on eligible project types, while HCPF and a third-party facilitator manage and coordinate the committee’s work. Application scoring and evaluation will be conducted by an external vendor overseen by HCPF, informed by committee input and formalized through a future Committee Charter.
The application is now open, and we are accepting applications through Feb 16. The first meeting will be held in March 2026. Please consider applying for one of the seats, or refer the application to someone you know.
 

Colorado’s Application

Important CMS and Program Information

For additional information including FAQs: CMS Rural Health Transformation Program

*The application was provided by CMS on September 15, 2025.

CMS Strategic Goals

  • Making Rural America Healthy Again - Support rural health innovations and new access points to promote preventative health and address root causes of diseases.
  • Creating Sustainable Access - Help rural providers become long-term access points for care by improving efficiency and sustainability.
  • Workforce Development - Attract and retain a high-skilled health care workforce by strengthening recruitment and retention of healthcare providers in rural communities.
  • Innovative Care - Spark the growth of innovative care models to improve health outcomes, coordinate care, and promote flexible care arrangements.
  • Tech 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.

Rural Health Transformation Program Funds Structure

The federal funds include $50 billion that will be allocated to approved States over five fiscal years and will be split into $10 billion allocations to be distributed annually from Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2026 to FFY 2030. All 50 states are eligible to apply. 

  • Each year, 50% of the $10 billion will be distributed evenly to all states with an approved application.
  • The remaining 50% of the annual funding amount will be allocated by CMS 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 and the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), with fund distribution available for no less than 25 percent of approved states.
  • States are not allowed to use this funding as a source of state match for additional federal dollars.

Timeline

  • December 31, 2025 - Award announcement.
  • January 2026 - Notice of Award received from CMS.
  • January 2026 - States work with CMS to enter into a cooperative agreement: details are unknown.
  • Any decisions of funding distribution and timing cannot be made until Colorado meets with CMS and the cooperative agreement is final.

Application Information Included:

  • Rural health transformation plan with goals delineated in H.R. 1.
  • Strategies to manage long-term financial solvency for rural hospitals.
  • Identification of specific causes driving the accelerating rate of standalone rural hospitals becoming at risk of closure, conversion, or service reduction.
  • A plan to use the funds to carry out three or more activities as outlined in the Bill.

Next Steps

  • Develop the Request for Application (RFA) materials.
  • Continuing to assemble the RHTP Committees.
    • Details regarding the proposed Committees’ structure, membership, and meeting schedules will be shared as they become available.

Meeting Schedule and Handouts

The meeting schedule for the Committee will be posted when it is approved.

Allowed Providers

Colorado's Permissible Uses

  • Prevention and Chronic Disease: Promoting evidence-based, measurable interventions to improve prevention and chronic disease management.
    • Includes Consumer Tech Solutions: Providing technical assistance, software, and hardware for significant information technology advances designed to improve efficiency, enhance cybersecurity capability development, and improve patient health outcomes.
  • Fostering Collaboration: Initiating, fostering, and strengthening local and regional strategic partnerships between rural facilities and other health care providers to promote quality improvement, improve financial stability of rural facilities, and expand access to care.
    • Includes Developing the Workforce: Recruiting and retaining clinical workforce talent to rural areas, with commitments to serve rural communities for a minimum of 5 years.
  • Appropriate Care Availability: 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.
  • Innovative Models of Care: Developing projects that support innovative models of care that include value-based care arrangements and alternative payment models, as appropriate.

Additional Resources

Newsletters

Stakeholder Webinars

A Rural Health Transformation Program Webinar for all stakeholders was held on Tuesday, December 2, 2025.

Contact Us

Sign up for our newsletter here!

Where to Direct Questions

To ensure a timely response to your RHTP correspondence, email: hcpf_RHTP@state.co.us 

Reasonable accommodations for the meetings will be provided upon request for persons with disabilities. Please contact hcpf_rhtp@state.co.us at least one week prior to the scheduled meeting if you need special arrangements.

People using assistive technology may not be able to fully access the information in some files. For assistance, contact Shay Lyon at shay.lyon@state.co.us.