Trump Administration Announces $169 Million to Expand Specialty Care, Strengthen Emergency Services, and Bring Lifesaving Blood Transfusions Closer to Colorado Patients
This federal investment will support 91 grantees expanding telemedicine, mobile care, behavioral and maternal healthcare, and rural healthcare workforce initiatives across Colorado
The Trump Administration announced today that a $169.6 million investment is being delivered to strengthen and expand healthcare for rural Coloradans through the federal Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP). This investment will support 91 grantees and approximately 250 projects working to improve access to care, strengthen rural providers and emergency services, and modernize healthcare delivery across Colorado.
Projects will expand telemedicine in ICUs and inpatient settings, remote patient monitoring, mobile clinics, and community paramedicine; strengthen behavioral health, substance use disorder, maternal, newborn, and pediatric care; and modernize electronic health records and shared technology. Funding will also expand access to lifesaving whole-blood transfusions before patients reach the hospital, including training rural EMS providers across a network reaching 39 Colorado counties.
“President Trump understands that every American deserves high-quality healthcare, no matter where they live,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “We are putting resources directly into rural communities to strengthen the health workforce, modernize infrastructure, expand access, and bring care closer to home. We are giving states the flexibility to build solutions around the people they serve, while demanding accountability for results. That is how we strengthen rural health, improve the lives of patients and families, and Make America Healthy Again.”
“President Trump made a historic commitment to rural America, and these investments are turning that commitment into better care for patients in communities across Colorado,” said Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz. “This is what rural health transformation should look like: federal investment that is putting patients first, driving lasting improvements and expanding healthcare for the hardworking Americans who call these communities home.”
Today’s investment was made possible through the Working Families Tax Cuts Act — passed by Republicans in Congress and unanimously opposed by Democrats — delivering a historic $50 billion investment to help states transform the way healthcare is delivered in America.
“Families in Western and Southern Colorado deserve access to quality health care close to home. In a district as large and rural as ours, that means investing in the hospitals, clinics, emergency services, and health care professionals our communities rely on every day. These resources will help expand telehealth and specialty care and strengthen rural health care across Colorado’s Third District. I’ll keep working to make sure rural Colorado gets its fair share and that Washington understands health care looks different in the communities I represent,” said Rep. Jeff Hurd.
“Coloradans who don’t have easy access to a hospital or clinic depend on investments in quality rural healthcare. Thanks to H.R. 1, signed into law last year, the Rural Health Transformation Program represents the single largest investment in rural healthcare in U.S. history. This program will work to make our healthcare system more efficient and ensure the long-term sustainability of our rural providers, so that Colorado patients can receive the telehealth, specialty care, EMS, and other essential care they deserve,” said Rep. Jeff Crank.
“Where you live shouldn’t determine whether you can get the health care you need,” said Rep. Gabe Evans. “This $169 million investment will strengthen rural health care across Colorado and help bring critical services closer to home for families. From expanding access to specialty and maternal care to strengthening EMS, telehealth, and our rural health care workforce, these resources will ensure rural Coloradans receive quality, lifesaving care in their own communities. I’m proud to have voted for the Rural Health Transformation Fund and to continue supporting investments like these that strengthen our rural hospitals and providers to make sure every Coloradan has access to the care they deserve.”
Colorado’s broader Rural Health Transformation Program strategy is designed to strengthen rural healthcare and support sustainable access across the state. Today’s announcement is one part of the larger overall funding amount awarded to Colorado for fiscal year 2026.
Key initiatives the overall RHTP funding will focus on include:
- Expanding telehealth and access to specialty care: Equipping rural providers with the tools and technical support needed to expand technology-enabled care, including telemedicine, remote patient monitoring, and regional telehealth networks that connect rural patients and providers with specialty expertise closer to home.
- Building the rural healthcare workforce: Supporting recruitment, training, career pathways, professional development, and retention strategies to strengthen the healthcare workforce serving rural communities.
- Strengthening emergency medical services and emergency care: Expanding emergency and transport capacity, regional training and coordination, workforce development, and access to lifesaving equipment, including efforts to expand the availability of whole-blood transfusions before patients reach the hospital.
- Expanding whole-person and community-based care: Connecting physical and behavioral health while expanding substance use disorder treatment, mobile and home-based services, and maternal, newborn, and pediatric care.
- Modernizing rural healthcare and strengthening regional partnerships: Investing in electronic health records, shared technology and data platforms, clinical equipment, and regional networks that allow rural hospitals, health centers, EMS agencies, behavioral health providers, and community organizations to share resources and better coordinate care.
The Trump Administration is delivering on its commitment to strengthen rural America by investing in solutions that modernize, transform and expand healthcare access for rural communities nationwide. Led by CMS, the RHTP is moving beyond the failed one-size-fits-all approach and giving rural communities the tools to build stronger, more innovative, and more sustainable health systems that deliver better care and better outcomes for the Americans they serve.
For more information about the RHTP, visit: https://www.medicaid.gov/resources-for-states/rural-health.
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