Rural healthcare is getting one of the biggest federal investments it has ever seen.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has launched the Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP), a $50 billion, five-year initiative designed to strengthen healthcare access, modernize technology, and support new models of care in rural communities across all 50 states.
For EMS agencies, hospitals, and state health leaders, this is more than just another grant. It is a chance to finally fix the systems that have made rural care harder than it needs to be.
Here is what the program is, why it matters, and how technology like ImageTrend’s Community Health™ and Health Information Hub™ (HIH) solutions can help states turn these funds into measurable improvements for the people they serve.
What is the Rural Health Transformation Program?
The Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) is a federal, state-driven investment designed to rebuild how care is delivered in rural America.
Between fiscal years 2026 and 2030, CMS will distribute $50 billion to all 50 states, with funding split between an equal base allocation and additional funding based on rural population, hospital needs, and the scale of each state’s plan.
Each state submits a single, statewide plan endorsed by the Governor that lays out how it will improve:
- Access to care
- Workforce stability
- Technology and interoperability
- Community-based and preventive services
- Innovative care models
CMS describes RHTP as a “catalytic investment” intended to help states build sustainable systems that last beyond the life of the grant.
Although CMS awards RHTP funding at the state level, much of that money is expected to flow down to local EMS agencies, hospitals, and regional partners to implement projects on the ground. Depending on the state, investments in technology and care delivery may be managed centrally, regionally, or locally.
That means EMS and hospital leaders should expect to see RHTP-funded initiatives take shape in a variety of ways, not just through a single statewide purchase.
What States are Trying to Fix
Rural healthcare looks different from state to state, but the underlying problems are remarkably similar.
Many rural communities struggle with:
- Long transport times
- Limited access to specialists
- Workforce shortages
- Hospitals operating on thin margins
- Rising rates of chronic disease
- Behavioral health needs
- Substance use disorders
Many agencies are also still working with disconnected technology and limited data sharing, making it harder to coordinate care or prove what is working.
This is why so many states are using their Rural Health Transformation plans to focus on the same priorities: expanding telehealth, strengthening EMS and community-based care, building regional networks, and improving how data flows between EMS, hospitals, and public health.
RHTP is not about small tweaks. It’s about redesigning how care reaches people in rural areas so it is closer, more coordinated, and easier for already overwhelmed teams to deliver.
Where Technology Fits into the Rural Health Transformation Program
A big part of that redesign depends on technology.
CMS has made it clear that Rural Health Transformation funds can be used to support things like health IT, interoperability, telehealth, cybersecurity, and tools that reduce administrative burden while improving patient outcomes. In other words, this is not just money for buildings and equipment. It’s funding for the digital backbone that makes modern care possible.
States are already looking at ways to use this investment to improve how EMS, hospitals, and community programs share information, coordinate services, and track results across the continuum of care. That includes everything from connecting prehospital data to hospital systems, to supporting community paramedicine and chronic care programs, to making it easier to report and analyze outcomes.
This is where ImageTrend’s platform fits in. Our solutions give states, EMS agencies, and hospitals the connected data and workflows needed to turn Rural Health Transformation plans into something that actually works in the real world.
Using RHTP Funds for Value-Based Care with Community Health™
Many states are expanding mobile integrated healthcare, community paramedicine, behavioral health response, and chronic disease outreach as part of their rural transformation plans. If you are involved in designing or delivering any of those programs, the challenge is not just funding them. It is making sure they actually work at scale.
ImageTrend’s Community Health module is built for exactly that kind of work.
Community Health helps you:
- Identify high-risk and high-utilizer patients
- Track chronic disease and behavioral health programs
- Manage home visits, follow-ups, and referrals
- Coordinate care with hospitals and community partners
- Reduce low-acuity 911 calls while improving access to care
Because it is part of the ImageTrend Elite platform, Community Health also connects directly to EMS operations, documentation, reporting, and billing. That means you can move from reactive emergency response to proactive community care without stitching together multiple systems.
For states investing in prevention, regionalization, and care closer to home, this is a practical way to turn RHTP funding into outcomes you can measure and sustain.
Using RHTP Funds to Fix EMS-Hospital Gaps with Health Information Hub™
Another major focus of the Rural Health Transformation Program is interoperability. If you work in rural EMS, hospital operations, or state health IT, you already know why. Disconnected systems, manual chart chasing, and delayed outcome data make it harder to deliver good care and even harder to improve it.
Health Information Hub (HIH) was designed to close those gaps.
HIH gives you automatic, bidirectional data exchange between:
- EMS ePCRs
- Hospital EMRs and EHRs
- HIEs
- Outcome data
- Billing and registry systems
In other words, that means:
- Your EMS teams can send patient data to the ED before arrival
- Your hospitals can see complete prehospital information and receive alerts for incoming patients
- Your EMS crews can get discharge outcomes back into their charts
- Both sides have a more complete, more reliable patient record for reporting, billing, and quality programs
HIH also supports Carequality Treatment Query, which gives EMS access to a national network of more than 600,000 providers, 50,000 clinics, and 2,800 hospitals. That means your crews can see allergies, medications, and medical history while they are still in the field, not after the fact.
For states and regions trying to build stronger networks and reduce fragmentation, HIH makes interoperability something you can deploy now, not just plan for later.
Why ImageTrend is a Smart Use of RHTP Funds
The Rural Health Transformation Program is about more than buying software. It’s about creating systems that improve access to care, strengthen coordination, and make limited resources go further over the long term.
Whether you are shaping a statewide strategy or running programs on the ground, ImageTrend gives you a platform that supports both.
With ImageTrend, you get:
- Proven implementations across EMS, hospitals, and state systems
- Configurable workflows that adapt how care is delivered in your region
- Real-time data sharing across the continuum of care
- AI-enabled tools that reduce documentation time and staffing strain
- Reporting and analytics that help you track progress against RHTP goals
From community paramedicine to statewide interoperability, ImageTrend helps you turn federal investment into improvements you can actually see in rural communities.
Take the Next Step
RHTP funding is being rolled out across all 50 states, and the choices being made now will shape how rural care is delivered for years to come.
If you are involved in planning, funding, or running EMS, hospital, or community health programs, this is the time to understand where technology fits and how it can support your goals.
