Rural Health Transformation Program
The Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) is a statewide initiative designed to strengthen health care in Wisconsin’s rural communities. Supported by $203 million in federal funding from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and administered by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS), the program invests in rural communities across three major initiatives:
- strengthen the rural health care workforce,
- drive rural technology and innovation,
- and transform rural care through partnerships.
Lasting improvement in rural health care happens when local expertise, high-quality data, and collaborative leadership come together to support community-drive solutions. WCHQ was selected as a partner in Wisconsin’s RHTP work to provide data and technical assistance that supports technology, care coordination, and evaluation. Recognizing the workforce, operational, and financial pressures facing rural providers, WCHQ chose to participate to ensure that investments support local communities and result in meaningful, sustainable improvements.
WCHQ Role in Supporting Member Participation
WCHQ plans to support member organizations pursuing RHTP funding by providing baseline data and analytics to strengthen proposals, identifying priority populations and service gaps using statewide clinical data, facilitating partnerships among health systems and community organizations, and assisting with proposal development for organizations without dedicated grant-writing capacity.
If members receive funding, WCHQ can also support implementation by providing measurement and evaluation infrastructure, dashboards for reporting outcomes to DHS and CMS, and technical assistance using data-driven quality improvement. Leveraging WCHQ’s existing data infrastructure may also help reduce reporting burden for participating providers.
Strategic Consideration
The Rural Health Transformation Program represents a significant opportunity for WCHQ members to secure resources for rural care transformation. WCHQ’s statewide data infrastructure positions the organization to play a central role in helping members compete for funding and demonstrate measurable impact. For more information on how WCHQ can support your efforts with this important opportunity, contact Abbey Harburn, MPH.
