HHS Awards More than $30 Million to Strengthen Rural Hosptial Networks and Improve Health Care for Rural Americans 8/7/2003
From: HRSA Press Office, 301-443-3376; web: http://www.hhs.gov/news WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today announced more than $30 million in grants to states to improve health care for rural Americans by strengthening rural hospital networks, supporting State Offices of Rural Health and encouraging rural health care coalitions. "These grants help maintain and upgrade small hospitals in remote areas and coordinate and improve health care delivery in rural parts of the country," Secretary Thompson said. "Both steps are vital elements of strategies to make high-quality health care more easily available to rural Americans." The rural health care grants announced today include: -- 45 Rural Hospital Flexibility grants, totaling almost $22.6 million. The funds go mostly to states to help hospitals interested in being certified as Critical Access Hospitals upgrade quality of care and improve emergency medical services. Critical Access Hospitals have 25 beds or fewer and qualify for special Medicare funding, including cost-based reimbursement. -- 50 grants totaling more than $7.2 million to State Offices of Rural Health. The grants will help the state offices provide technical assistance to rural and frontier communities, coordinate statewide rural health activities and recruit and retain rural health care providers. -- Two Rural Health Outreach grants. The two grants -- $200,000 to the Nassau County Health Dept. in Fernandina Beach, Fla., and $189,475 to the Island Health Plan, Inc. in West Tisbury, Mass. -- will fund coalitions of at least three health-related organizations to stimulate innovative health care delivery in rural areas. All of the grants are administered by HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration through its Office of Rural Health Policy ( http://ruralhealth.hrsa.gov/ ). "Saving small hospitals that deliver scarce health care services, recruiting providers to staff those facilities, and building stronger area-wide health care systems are all important parts of HRSA's mission to improve rural health care," HRSA Administrator Elizabeth M. Duke said. "These investments help HRSA's partners at the state and local levels work with us to reach our shared goals." Listing for the Rural Hospital Flexibility and Offices of Rural Health grants follow: -- Rural Hospital Flexibility Grant Program -- Organization, City, State, Amount o Alabama Department of Public Health, Montgomery, Ala., $480,000 o Alaska Department of Health & Social Services, Juneau, Alaska, $544,000 o University of Arizona, Tucson, Ariz., $573,000 o Arkansas Department of Health, Little Rock, Ark., $421,000 o California Department of Public Health, Department of Health Services, Sacramento, Calif., $326,200 o Colorado Rural Health Center, Denver, Colo., $529,200 o Florida Department of Health, Tallahassee, Fla., $550,000 o Georgia Department of Community Health, Atlanta, Ga., $585,000 o Hawaii Department of Health, Honolulu, Hawaii, $543,000 o Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, Boise, Idaho, $474,890 o Illinois Department of Public Health, Springfield, Ill., $668,000 o Indiana Department of Health, Indianapolis, Ind., $526,000 o Iowa Department of Public Health, Des Moines, Iowa, $465,000 o Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Topeka, Kan., $620,000 o University of Kentucky, Research Foundation, Lexington, Ky., $583,800 o Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, Baton Rouge, La., $385,000 o Maine Department of Human Services, Augusta, Maine, $435,000 o Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Boston, Mass., $223,340 o Michigan Department of Community Health, Coldwater, Mich., $513,600 o Minnesota Department of Health, Saint Paul, Minn., $685,000 o Mississippi Department of Health, Jackson, Miss., $395,000 o Missouri Department of Health, Jefferson City, Mo., $407,750 o Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, Helena, Mont., $660,000 o State of Nebraska, Lincoln, Neb., $630,000 o University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nev., $578,000 o State of New Hampshire, Concord, N.H., $365,500 o State of New Mexico, Albuquerque, N.M., $231,580 o Health Research, Inc., Rensselaer, N.Y., $421,250 o North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Raleigh, N.C., $574,000 o University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, N.D., $655,000 o Ohio Department of Health, Columbus, Ohio, $600,000 o Oklahoma Department of Health, Oklahoma City, Okla., $614,000 o Oregon Health & Sciences University, Portland, Ore., $653,850 o Pennsylvania Department of Public Health & Human Services, Harrisburg, Pa., $357,390 o South Carolina State Office of Rural Health Inc., Columbia, S.C., $452,560 o South Dakota Department of Health, Pierre, S.D., $660,000 o Tennessee Department of Health, Nashville, Tenn., $517,000 o Texas Office of Rural Community Affairs, Austin, Texas, $615,000 o Utah Department of Health, Salt Lake City, Utah , $371,000 o Vermont Department of Health, Burlington, Vt., $234,250 o Virginia Department of Health, Richmond, Va., $352,000 o Washington Department of Health, Olympia, Wash., $585,000 o West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, Charleston, W.Va., $485,700 o University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis., $651,145 o Wyoming Department of Health, Cheyenne, Wyo., $379,300 TOTAL: $22,577,305 -- State Offices of Rural Health -- Organization, City, State, Award o Alabama Department of Public Health, Montgomery, Ala., $150,000 o Alaska Dept. of Health and Social Services, Juneau , Alaska, $150,000 o Arizona Prevention Center, Office of Rural Health, Tucson, Ariz., $150,000 o Arkansas Department of Health, Little Rock, Ark., $150,000 o California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, Calif., $150,000 o Colorado Rural Health Center, Denver, Colo., $150,000 o Northwestern Conn. Community College, Winsted, Conn., $150,000 o Delaware Dept. of Health and Social Services, New Castle, Del., $108,000 o Florida Department of Health, Tallahassee, Fla., $150,000 o Georgia Department of Community Health, Atlanta, Ga., $150,000 o Hawaii State Department of Health, Honolulu, Hawaii, $150,000 o Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, Boise, Idaho, $147,418 o Illinois Department of Public Health, Springfield, Ill., $150,000 o Indiana State Department of Health, Indianapolis, Ind., $150,000 o Iowa Department of Public Health, Des Moines, Iowa, $150,000 o Kansas Dept. of Health and Environment, Topeka, Kan., $150,000 o University of Kentucky, Research Foundation, Lexington, Ky., $150,000 o Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, Baton Rouge, La., $150,000 o Maine Department of Human Services, Augusta, Maine, $136,968 o Maryland Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene, Baltimore, Md., $150,000 o Massachusetts Dept. of Public Health, Boston, Mass., $150,000 o Michigan Department of Community Health, Lansing, Mich., $58,916 o Minnesota Department of Health, Saint Paul, Minn., $150,000 o Mississippi Department of Health & Senior Services, Jackson, Miss., $150,000 o Missouri Department of Health, Jefferson City, Mo., $150,000 o Montana State University, Bozeman, Mont., $150,000 o Nebraska Health and Human Services System, Lincoln, Neb., $150,000 o University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nev., $150,000 o New Hampshire Dept. of Health and Human Services, Concord, N.H., $150,000 o New Jersey Dept. of Health and Senior Services, Trenton, N.J., $150,000 o New Mexico Department of Health, Santa Fe, N.M., $150,000 o Health Research, Inc., New York Dept. of Health, Rensselaer, N.Y., $150,000 o N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, Raleigh, N.C., $150,000 o University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Grand Forks, N.D., $150,000 o Ohio Department of Health, Columbus, Ohio, $140,831 o Oklahoma State University, Tulsa, Okla., $200,000 o University of Oregon, Health Science Center, Portland, Ore., $150,000 o Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa., $150,000 o Rhode Island Department of Health, Providence, R.I., $85,000 o South Carolina State Office, Columbia, S.C., $150,000 o South Dakota Department of Health, Pierre, S.D., $150,000 o Tennessee Department of Health, Nashville, Tenn., $150,000 o Texas Dept. of Public Health, Austin, Texas, $150,000 o Utah Department of Health, Salt Lake City, Utah, $150,000 o Vermont Department of Health, Waterbury, Vt., $150,000 o Virginia Department of Health, Richmond, Va., $150,000 o Washington Department of Health, Olympia, Wash., $150,000 o W.Va. Dept. of Health and Human Resources, Charleston, W.Va., $150,000 o University of Wisconsin, Madison, Madison, Wis., $150,000 o Wyoming Department of Health, Cheyenne, Wyo., $62,028 TOTAL: $7,239,161 --- Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are available at http://www.hhs.gov/news | |