ToRCH Care Minor Renovation Bid Opportunity Is Open

The Missouri Department of Social Services today issued Invitation for Bid (IFB) #DSS26009001 for the ToRCH Care Strategic Minor Renovations (Horizon 1) program. This funding opportunity supports the design, modernization and strategic renovation of existing rural hospital facilities as part of Missouri’s Rural Health Transformation Program. Rural hospitals on DSS’ distribution list should have received the bid, but the IFB is publicly available and can be accessed by any interested hospital.

A virtual preproposal conference, with a question-and-answer session, will be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday, May 19. Hospital staff wishing to attend must email Dirk Elrod, with DSS, to receive the meeting invitation. Hospital teams with questions regarding the bid also may email Elrod in advance of the preproposal conference. Bids are due by 2 p.m. Thursday, June 4.

About the Rural Health Transformation Program

The Rural Health Transformation Program, created under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), is a landmark federal initiative to strengthen rural Americans' health care access and outcomes through sustainability and innovation. Beginning in 2026, the program provides $50 billion over five years, divided equally between state-distributed funds and competitive grants to states awarded by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Missouri's state-led initiative, known as Transformation of Rural Community Health (ToRCH Care) and coordinated by the MO HealthNet Division within the Missouri Department of Social Services, received a $216 million award from CMS for the first year of the program. ToRCH Care is expected to build local partnerships, expand care coordination and build capacity through a “community hub” model. Rural hospitals, clinics and provider networks are expected to be the primary recipients of these funds. These investments are especially critical as hospitals face future reductions in Medicaid state-directed payments and provider tax matching rates, which disproportionately impact rural hospitals.