DHS Applies for $1 Billion in Federal Funding to Expand Access to High Quality Health Services in Rural Wisconsin

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) submitted its application for $1 billion as part of the Rural Health Transformation Program. Since August, more than 200 partners have provided feedback to shape Wisconsin’s application. The application is the first step toward connecting partners in rural communities to promote equitable, efficient, and sustainable health systems throughout Wisconsin.

“Ensuring Wisconsinites have access to affordable health care is a top priority for me and my administration, and this work is more important than ever,” said Gov. Tony Evers. “We look forward to being able to invest this funding to help expand access to quality, affordable health care—especially in our rural areas—while strengthening our workforce and supporting our local and state economies. Here in Wisconsin, we must keep working to lower the cost of health care, bolster our health care workforce, and support health care access across our state, and we look forward to continuing this important work.”

This $1 billion investment will focus on rural capacity, sustainability, and innovation across three major initiatives:

• Strengthen the rural health care workforce – $337 million. Recruiting and retaining an adequate health care workforce is a challenge in rural areas, making access to quality, timely care for rural residents difficult. This funding will provide grants for innovative workforce projects in rural communities, support career pathways for rural health care providers, and fund services provided by community health workers.
• Drive rural technology and innovation – $329 million. Rural Wisconsin needs the technology to support and reach residents, such as closed-loop referral systems and telehealth capabilities. This funding will invest in upgrades to rural provider systems, digital infrastructure, and develop a digital rural health care collaborative.
• Transform rural care through partnerships – $279 million. Rural Wisconsinites experience fragmented coordination across primary care, specialty care, behavioral health, chronic disease prevention, and community social supports. This funding will stand up a competitive grant program for rural regions to create coordinated systems of care where multi-sector partnerships show a clear path to sustainability.

“This opportunity builds upon our efforts to provide Wisconsin with the support we need to improve access to care for people who live in rural parts of the state,” said DHS Secretary Kirsten Johnson. “One-third of Wisconsinites live in rural Wisconsin and often lack access to care due to limited provider availability, outdated technologies, and disconnected systems which can result in fragmented care. This funding will allow us to strengthen the infrastructure to improve health outcomes for those who live in rural Wisconsin.”

Since 2019, Gov. Evers has been working to expand access to quality, affordable health care for all Wisconsinites, including in the state’s most rural communities, which often face additional hurdles in ensuring residents have access to health care. These efforts have included previous budget investments to increase support for rural health care providers and initiatives to invest in the state’s health care infrastructure, such as the Governor’s Task Force on the Healthcare Workforce. The task force was created by Gov. Evers to focus on how to strategically invest in building a stronger workforce to address staffing shortages in health care. Several recommendations were made to reduce barriers and increase incentives for providers who practice in rural communities.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will provide awardee decisions by December 31, 2025. If awarded, DHS plans to partner with rural health care providers, local and Tribal governments, and other private and public partners to ensure local expertise drives this work. Given the complexity of this project, DHS will soon be recruiting for a team to manage the $1 billion project including a program director. Information about upcoming recruitment opportunities will be posted on the DHS careers webpage.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.