Health Care

States race to enact Trump-backed policy changes to win rural health funding

All 50 states applied for Rural Health Transformation Program money to offset federal Medicaid cuts.
Vice President JD Vance, right, and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., wave as they depart the inaugural Make America Healthy Again summit at the Waldorf Astoria, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

States vying for a share of a $50 billion rural health windfall are pledging to advance a slate of Trump administration-backed policy changes, an early sign that an unconventional effort to steer state policy is influencing legislatures nationwide.

The commitments appear in applications filed this month by all 50 states for the new Rural Health Transformation Fund. Congress created the fund to offset losses to hospitals and other providers from an estimated $911 billion in Medicaid cuts included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

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