Legal Bulletins
Rural Health Transformation Program
Beginning in 2026 and continuing for five years, CMS will spend up to $10 billion annually to improve the health of residents living in rural areas under the new Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP). Maryland health care providers that serve rural health populations are scheduled to receive over $168 million in the federal fiscal year 2026 and another allocation of funds after the start of the 2027 federal fiscal year on October 1, 2026.
To qualify for Maryland RHTP funding, health care providers must submit proposals to the State that address one of the many Maryland RHTP policy goals and address the needs of rural Marylanders. Some of these goals include improving the rural health care work force; promoting access to primary care, disease management, and behavioral health care; and increasing access to food choices that address root causes of chronic diseases like heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. Funding will be available for both shovel-ready immediate impact initiatives and strategic, transformational long-term initiatives.
Health care providers who provide services to Marylanders located in the following rural counties are eligible to receive funding: Allegany, Calvert, Caroline, Carroll, Cecil, Charles, Dorchester, Frederick, Garrett, Harford, Kent, Queen Anne’s, Somerset, St. Mary’s, Talbot, Washington, Wicomico, and Worcester. Providers servicing residents in Allegany, Caroline, Dorchester, Garrett, Kent, Queen Anne’s, Somerset, Talbot, and Worcester Counties may be prioritized for funding opportunities as federally-designated rural counties.
The State Office of Rural Health (within the Maryland Department of Health) is responsible for the implementation and management of Maryland’s RHTP funding. That office will use a specially designated committee to review and approve funding requests to support Maryland’s RHTP goals. The committee is tentatively scheduled to meet quarterly with its first meeting occurring in late February 2026.
Maryland health care providers seeking to make short-term or long-term changes to the delivery of care to residents in these rural areas should be considering how to best achieve those changes either on their own or in partnership with RHTP funding.
Gordon Feinblatt's health care attorneys are available to assist with this planning.
If you have any questions, please contact Christopher P. Dean.
Christopher P. Dean
410-576-4249 • cdean@gfrlaw.com