Whether you're measuring quality of trauma care or efficiency of teleheath networks, rural areas in the U.S. continually seem to lag behind the rest of the nation. That's one of the main reasons why Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced Monday that HHS will be pouring more than $32 million into efforts aimed at improving healthcare in those areas.
Roughly $22 million will go toward improving quality in areas served by critical access hospitals, a press release announced. An additional $3 million will go toward luring and keeping health professionals in rural areas, while $2 million more will be allotted for the Telehealth Network Grant Program, which aims to make it possible for patients to receive quality care without travelling far.
"The ultimate goal is to build healthier rural populations and communities," Sebelius said in a statement.
Another $1 million will go toward kicking off the Flex Rural Veterans Health Access Program, which will look to establish "innovative" methods for helping veterans gain access to mental healthcare.
For more information:
- here's the HHS press release
- check out the specific state-by-state breakdown of funding
- read this post on Healthwatch, The Hill's healthcare blog
- read this InformationWeek article