Missouri – Governor Mike Kehoe announced that Missouri has formally sent its Rural Health Transformation (RHT) plan to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). This is a big step toward making healthcare more accessible and sustainable in rural areas of the state. The Governor’s Office, several state departments, and healthcare partners worked together to come up with a plan that will improve the overall rural healthcare system in the long run.
The RHT plan’s main goals are to make it easier for people to get care, make care better, improve communication between providers, and make sure that rural healthcare facilities stay financially stable. The project is part of a nationwide effort to help rural states build modern healthcare systems that can satisfy their requirements now and in the future.
Governor Kehoe complimented the federal government for seeing how important it is to help rural towns with initiatives like the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” He said that Missouri’s submission was the result of cooperation between all levels of government and the healthcare sector. He said that the plan would “make a lasting difference for future generations of rural Missourians” by making sure that every aspect of the state’s healthcare network works together and comes up with new ideas.
One of the main goals of Missouri’s plan is to connect hospitals, clinics, pharmacies, public health offices, and home care resources into a single digital network. The idea is to make it easier for people who live in rural areas to access the services they need without having to drive far or deal with systems that don’t work together. It also wants to make it easier for people to get primary care, behavioral health treatment, and maternity care. It does this by employing telemedicine and patient-centered technologies to provide specialized care to small towns.
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Another important part of the plan is to help rural providers become more financially stable by encouraging collaborations between local groups, making operations more efficient, and rewarding improved health outcomes through shared savings initiatives that save costs that aren’t necessary.
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The Missouri Department of Social Services (DSS), through its MO HealthNet Division, worked closely with the Departments of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) and Mental Health (DMH) to write and submit the proposal. Jess Bax, the director of DSS, said that working together with other agencies and stakeholders led to a “bold plan” that might change the way healthcare works for those who live in rural areas.
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CMS should look over all the proposals from the states that are taking part and declare the winners by December 31, 2025. The states that are picked will get money through cooperative agreements for the following five years.
Governor Kehoe’s letter to CMS Administrator Dr. Oz in support of Missouri’s plan can be read at this link. For more information on Missouri’s RHT plan, please visit DSS’s website.
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