Oregon Health Authority (OHA) will invest the federal funding in community-driven projects that improve healthcare access, boost chronic disease management and prevention, grow and sustain the healthcare workforce, and expand the use of health technology and data in Oregon’s rural and frontier communities. The Oregon Rural Health Transformation Program includes a dedicated Tribal initiative that will provide direct funding for the Nine Federally Recognized Tribes in Oregon to improve their own healthcare access and health outcomes in a way that honors the government-to-government relationship with the Tribes.

Oregon is centering the unique needs and perspectives of people in rural communities for this effort. OHA conducted statewide engagement to develop its original funding proposal, and will continue to closely collaborate with hospitals, clinics, providers, patients and others in rural Oregon as it implements the program during the next five years.

“Oregon is resolved to steward this funding effectively, ensuring it benefits rural communities across the entire state,” said Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek. “We look forward to working in partnership with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to advance rural health transformation and improve the lives of our rural and frontier residents.”

“Everyone deserves access to quality healthcare, no matter where they live,” said OHA Health Policy & Analytics Director Clare Pierce-Wrobel. “OHA is honored to partner with rural communities through the Rural Health Transformation Program. While this much-needed boost can’t make up for the substantial federal funding cuts we anticipate in the coming years, OHA is committed to using this opportunity to support as many promising and sustainable rural health solutions as possible.”

The federal funding is being awarded through the Rural Health Transformation Program, which was established under House Resolution 1, the federal government budget reconciliation bill that became law in July 2025. The federal program will distribute a total of $50 billion nationwide between 2026 and 2031. The total amount that individual states will receive is subject to change. The federal government will revisit funding awards every year after reviewing each state’s progress. OHA will review the terms and conditions of Oregon’s award and work with the federal government to finalize the program budget in January.

The Rural Health Coordinating Council, which advises the Oregon Office of Rural Health, will also advise the Oregon Rural Health Transformation Program.

OHA will move as fast as possible to distribute funding and plans to make two sets of awards in quick succession during 2026. Early on, OHA will stand up management structures to ensure proper oversight and fiscal stewardship of these federal funds as well as coordination with the federal government and community engagement. OHA will first distribute funding through Immediate Impact Awards that will be given to strategic projects that can begin within two months of receiving funding. By mid-2026, Catalyst Awards will be made to ready-to-go projects following a formal application process. OHA expects to begin accepting Catalyst Award applications by spring 2026. In later years, further funding will be awarded through a competitive process to projects that are focused on long-term sustainability, shared infrastructure and cross-sector collaboration.  

Oregon initially requested $200 million annually, or a total of $1 billion over five years, from the federal program. OHA will scale down its original proposal to fit its given budget.

More information is on the OHA Rural Health Transformation Program webpage. Organizations interested in applying for funding are encouraged to sign up for email updates through the webpage.

The Oregon Rural Health Transformation Program is supported by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $197,271,578, with 100 percent funded by CMS/HHS. The contents of this release are those of OHA and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, CMS/HHS or the U.S. Government.

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