The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, in coordination with the Governor’s Office, today announced the application process is underway for the second round of Rural Health Transformation Funding (RHTP). RHTP was established through President Trump’s One, Big, Beautiful Bill.
$93,590,808.02 million is available in this round, specifically in the Promoting Access, Coordination, and Transformation (PACT) category. Overall, approximately $209 million will be distributed in 2026, with $1 billion anticipated over the next five years.
PACT is designed to strengthen and modernize Arkansas’s rural health system by expanding access to care, improving coordination across providers, and supporting system‑wide transformation through integrated networks, workforce alignment, and technology‑enabled infrastructure.
Examples of qualified projects in this round include:
- Expand access to primary, specialty, preventive, and behavioral health services in rural and underserved areas
- Improve coordination of care across hospitals, clinics, EMS, pharmacies, and community providers
- Strengthen trauma readiness and emergency response capabilities
- Support clinically integrated networks (CINs) and shared data infrastructure
- Expand practice authority for licensed healthcare professionals to practice at the top of their credentials and workforce optimization
- Modernize rural health systems through telehealth, technology, and strategic facility investments
“We are already seeing statewide collaboration on RHTP initiatives, with rural providers committed to maximizing the impact on Arkansans,” said DFA Secretary Jim Hudson. “This funding, combined with Governor Sanders’ innovative approach to rural healthcare, will benefit generations of citizens. Arkansas’ RHTP program gives rural providers of all sizes an opportunity to expand their reach and quality of care.”
Governor Sanders and DFA worked closely with stakeholders across the state to establish the priorities for RHTP. Outreach included feedback from physicians, nurses, pharmacists, hospitals, and other healthcare providers, as well as higher education institutions and community-based non-profits. DFA has also hosted numerous townhalls across Arkansas to educate stakeholders on RHTP priorities and the grant application process.
In addition to PACT, Arkansas’s priorities for RHTP include:
Telehealth, Health‑Monitoring, and Response Innovation for Vital Expansion (THRIVE), which modernizes rural healthcare delivery by expanding telehealth access, strengthening emergency medical response systems, and deploying remote patient monitoring technologies
Recruitment Innovation Skills and Education for Arkansas (RISE AR), which strengthens the rural healthcare workforce through expanded physician residencies and other clinical training programs, provides incentives to recruit and retain healthcare professionals in rural Arkansas, and provides training to ensure leaders and board members of local hospitals and clinics are prepared for the transformation required in rural healthcare.
Healthy Eating, Active Recreation, and Transformation (HEART), a program focused on improving health outcomes and access to preventative care by creating a coordinated, community-driven approach to nutrition, physical activity, and chronic disease management.
Additional details, including the link to apply, can be found at www.ArkansasRHTP.com. Interested applicants may also send questions to moc.PTHRsasnakrA@ofni. DFA is committed to providing a transparent and streamlined application process to access funding. Technical assistance will also be made available to stakeholders as needed.
This project is supported by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $208,779,396.02 with 100% funded by CMS/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official.
