ASTHO Members Convene to Share Perspectives on Rural Health Transformation Program

September 05, 2025

ARLINGTON, VA — On September 4, ASTHO members and leadership convened for a panel discussion on the Rural Health Transformation Program. The panel focused on the $50 billion investment in rural health care as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

"Our vision for the rural health fund is to address issues we heard about from many rural health care providers and their community members. This includes maternal health, access to behavioral health services, emergency medical services, transportation, and workforce," said ASTHO Past-President and Secretary of Health for the Pennsylvania Department of Health Debra Bogen, MD. "It is essential that we strengthen the primary care workforce in rural parts of our state. Understaffed primary care results in overuse of emergency departments and missed opportunities for prevention. Working with many partners, we want this funding to be foundational for innovation in rural Pennsylvania."

"The majority of Mississippians live in rural areas, so this grant is a big deal for us," said ASTHO member and State Health Officer for the Mississippi State Department of Public Health Daniel Edney, MD. "Some of the issues we are focused on include a statewide health information exchange, distribution of hospital beds, chronic diseases, investing in remote patient monitoring, leveraging telehealth, and emergency medical services. In terms of outcomes, we need to see the life expectancy of Mississippians go up. If all Mississippians benefit from this grant, poverty will go down and our whole ship will rise higher."

In addition to Drs. Bogen and Edney, leaders from the National Rural Health Association, National Association of Medicaid Directors, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services participated. 

Learn more from a recent ASTHO blog: Understanding and Applying for the Rural Health Transformation Program.

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ASTHO is the national nonprofit organization representing the public health agencies of the United States, the U.S. territories and freely associated states, and Washington, D.C., as well as the more than 100,000 public health professionals these agencies employ. ASTHO members, the chief health officials of these jurisdictions, are dedicated to formulating and influencing sound public health policy and to ensuring excellence in public health practice.