RHTP Announces Home Visiting Funding, Launches Digital Backbone Roadshows

Two new initiatives helping to strengthen care delivery and improve health outcomes across rural Missouri are available through the state’s Rural Health Transformation Program.

The Missouri Department of Social Services’ MO HealthNet Division is investing $588,000 annually to support evidence-based nurse home visiting programs. Administered by the Missouri Children’s Trust Fund, the funding will help improve maternal and child health outcomes.

Up to $100,000 will support training and model fees for new nurse home visitors, while up to $488,000 will expand existing services. Eligible applicants must operate or be implementing a Home Visiting Evidence of Effectiveness (HomVEE)-approved nurse-led model.

A virtual informational meeting will be held from 9 to 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 8, and interested organizations can register here. Applications are due Sunday, Aug. 23, and must be submitted via email to Melinda.Kirsch@oa.mo.gov.

RHTP also is investing in Missouri’s rural health care future through the development of a Digital Backbone — a technology and data infrastructure designed to better connect rural providers, health systems and community services.

To help stakeholders better understand this work, RHTP will host Digital Backbone Roadshow events that will provide an overview of electronic health record modernization and interoperability, social-care referral systems, data and AI governance, advanced technologies, and the findings from Missouri’s Digital Readiness Survey.

• Monday, July 13, 3:30-5:30 p.m., Osage Beach, Mo.
• Tuesday, July 14, 2-4 p.m. Union, Mo.

Participants may attend in person or virtually and are encouraged to register and bring questions or concerns they would like addressed. Organizations also are encouraged to share the Digital Backbone Roadshow flyer within their networks to help spread awareness of this opportunity.

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. Members can stay up to date on ToRCH Care and other Rural Health Transformation Program news, funding opportunities and resources on MHA’s Rural Health Transformation Program webpage.