Idaho pursues $1 billion in new funding for rural healthcare access

Boise, Idaho – Governor Brad Little issued Executive Order 2025-08, the “Making Rural Idaho Healthy Again Act,” creating a collaborative new task force to advise on the state’s application for the Rural Health Transformation Program which was created by President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill. The executive order is available at this link: https://gov.idaho.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/eo-2025-08.pdf

The State of Idaho is applying for $200 million per year for five years, for a total of $1 billion.

“Idaho is a mostly rural state, and we are grateful for the significant investments President Trump and Congress have committed to improving healthcare access, quality, and outcomes in rural Idaho and across the country. The Idaho Rural Health Task Force introduces a new level of collaboration and expertise as we prepare to submit Idaho’s application for this transformative new program,” Governor Little said.

The authorization for the program comes with funding totaling $50 billion for all states over five years. The funding is divided into two buckets.

• 50% or $25 billion distributed equally among approved states.
• 50% or $25 billion distributed on the following criteria:
  • Population in rural areas
  • Proportion of rural healthcare facilities in the state compared to national facilities
  • Financial health of rural hospitals
  • Other factors

The Department of Health and Welfare (DHW) is in the process of writing Idaho’s grant application, which is due Nov. 5. Idaho expects to learn how much it will receive on Dec. 31, 2025.

Additional information on the program is available at this link: https://healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/providers/rural-health-transformation-program-grant/about-rural-health-transformation-program-grant