Arkansas awards nearly $150 million in rural health program funding

Arkansas awarded $149.3 million in federal funding to 50 projects to support rural healthcare efforts statewide, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced Thursday. 

Created last year through a federal tax and spending law called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the Rural Health Transformation Program will provide $50 billion to states over five years. Arkansas is expected to receive more than $1 billion, including $209 million for this year. 

Critics of the program have said it lacks transparency, which could make it difficult to protect against fraud, according to KFF, a nonprofit health policy and research group.

Applications open for Arkansas rural telehealth projects to receive federal funding

The initial funding announced Thursday included $55.7 million through the state’s Telehealth, Health-Monitoring and Responsive Innovation for Vital Expansion initiative and $93.6 million through the Promoting Access Coordination and Transportation priority, according to a press release. 

Funding for the remaining two initiatives in Arkansas’ program will be announced soon, Sanders said during a press conference at the state Capitol. The initial round of funding will support projects that reach all 75 of the state’s counties and “help every single Arkansan lead a better, healthier life,” she said. 

“Thanks to the grants we’re announcing today, we’re giving a lifeline to providers, who are in turn giving a lifeline to small communities in Arkansas,” Sanders said.  

The funding will support a variety of projects, including helping Arkansas Children’s provide remote monitoring and virtual care coordination for rural children with chronic diseases, and Conway Regional Health System’s deployment of a maternal mobile health unit.  

The funding comes as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act could reduce federal Medicaid funding in rural areas by $137 billion over 10 years, according to KFF estimates. Rural providers see larger proportions of patients insured through Medicaid.  

The federal law is expected to reduce federal spending on Medicaid by about $1 trillion during the next decade to help pay for tax cuts that disproportionately benefit the wealthy. 

The funding also comes as providers warn that the state’s healthcare system could be further strained by the end of Arkansas’ hybrid Medicaid expansion that covers more than 200,000 people. 

The Trump administration has said it won’t renew the program, and the state has asked for a two-year temporary extension to come up with a replacement.