[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 7, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S63-S64]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  RURAL HEALTH TRANSFORMATION PROGRAM

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, as someone who grew up in rural South 
Dakota, in the town of Murdo, which has a population of roughly 500--
and that would be rounding up--I know firsthand the joys of living in a 
rural community. I also know some of the challenges.
  Everything from package delivery to internet reliability can be more 
difficult when you live far outside a major city, and access to 
healthcare can sometimes be a real challenge. More than 100 rural 
hospitals have closed over the past two decades, and doctors can be few 
and far between in rural areas.
  But thanks to the working families tax cut legislation, however, help 
is on the way. Republicans' legislation created a $50 billion Rural 
Health Transformation Program to address the rural healthcare crisis. 
Instead of a top-down, Washington-dictated approach, we are giving 
States the resources and the freedom to find solutions for the 
particular challenges in their State and to find sustainable ways of 
ensuring rural healthcare access in their communities going forward.
  The response has been robust. Every State in the Union--red and blue, 
alike--has applied for and been approved for funding from this program. 
States have big plans.
  The Texas Tribune reports:


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       The state's health care agency said it will use the funds 
     to strengthen rural health care clinics in a variety of ways, 
     including: creating wellness and nutrition programs to rural 
     providers; educating and attracting health care professionals 
     to work in rural areas; and modernizing resources and 
     technology in rural centers.
       More specifically, it plans to ``add more than a thousand 
     rural health care'' positions with the additional funds.

  Another news article reports on Ohio, noting that ``the state's 
proposal focuses on addressing barriers to healthcare by building on 
existing state investments to expand access to care, strengthen the 
rural health workforce and modernize facilities and technology.''
  Georgia will be using Rural Health Transformation funding to upgrade 
technology and invest in its rural workforce. North Carolina will use 
the fund to, among other things, support more than 400 rural health 
facilities.
  The list goes on.
  My own State of South Dakota will be using its funding to invest in a 
number of priorities, including a major investment in telehealth, which 
can be a key way to access healthcare for those in rural areas.
  South Dakota will also be using its funding to create regional hubs 
for emergency services and to improve access to maternal and infant 
health, to ensure delivery of essential medical care.
  Back in June, a few months before Democrats tried to repeal the Rural 
Health Transformation fund, the Democrat leader said:

       This little fund to help reimburse rural hospitals is just 
     a fraud.

  He should tell that to his State, which applied for the program and 
received a $212 million grant. And that is for 2026 alone. When the 
State announced its application, the Office of New York State Mental 
Health Commissioner, Dr. Ann Sullivan, stated:

       Expanding access to services in underserved communities is 
     an important part of our effort to strengthen mental health 
     care statewide. The Rural Health Transformation Grant will 
     help New York State explore new partnerships, build our 
     health care workforce, and pursue innovative opportunities to 
     expand care in these areas.

  Let me repeat that.

       The Rural Health Transformation Grant will help New York 
     State explore new partnerships, build our health care 
     workforce, and pursue innovative opportunities to expand care 
     in these areas.

  That doesn't sound like fraud to me.
  Perhaps the Democratic leader would have preferred his State to miss 
out on these resources.
  Perhaps he would disagree with the Democrat Governor of Hawaii, who 
said:

       As a relatively small State, this will help us a lot to 
     keep our hospitals open, to make sure there are providers 
     available to have telehealth available.

  Mr. President, the Democrat leader can spread all the disinformation 
he wants. The Rural Health Transformation Program is in effect, and 
every State in the Union is benefiting. Republicans will continue to 
work to make healthcare more comfortable and accessible for American 
families.
  I want to thank Dr. Oz and his team at the Centers for Medicare and 
Medicaid Services for their tireless work to get this program up and 
running on an expedited timeline. I look forward to seeing all the ways 
this program will help transform healthcare in rural America.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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