Rural Health News is a weekly segment of Rural Health Today, a podcast by Hillsdale Hospital.
Welcome back to Rural Health News, the segment of Rural Health Today where we fill you in on the latest in rural health headlines. We’ll cover three headlines today: what’s most urgent, a rural health damage report, and a success story to send us into the week.
Most Urgent
Michigan lawmakers are responding to rural hospitals’ call to action questioning the classification of rural areas. Across the US, what counts as a rural community will play a significant role in how funding from the rural health transformation fund will be distributed and how much hospitals will have the opportunity to receive. Since funding designation for the state of Michigan was announced, healthcare leaders have expressed concern over the lack of clear guidance in distribution and the bureaucracy around applying for available funds. Some Michigan legislators are concerned that the original application for funding was not adequate to meet the needs of the state’s rural health, placing the state in a poor position to sustain healthcare in more remote communities.
As a rural hospital, we appreciate these legislators’ concerns over rural health funding and encourage other states to work with their representatives to find applicable solutions to sustain rural health access.
Damage Report
A recent report from Covista shows the damage staffing shortages have on patient care, especially in rural areas. 8.4 million healthcare jobs are open nationwide every year, according to the report, and most hospitals say these shortages make taking care of patients’ needs significantly more difficult. The roles that experience the most shortages are physician specialists, primary care physicians and technician roles. Rural communities report a more severe impact than urban communities, with 85% of rural healthcare leaders reporting local talent shortages as a primary difficulty for their organization, nearly double the rates of nonrural areas. Based on national data, 2.3 monthly vacancies exist per unemployed worker in rural areas, versus 1.7 monthly vacancies in metro areas. Unfortunately, hospitals project this problem will worsen in the future, largely due to the lack of new talent joining the pipeline.
We highlight this report to emphasize the importance of fostering the next generation of healthcare workers, from high school nursing applications to student programs to long-term talent retention strategies.
Success Story
Many rural communities across our country lack access to youth mental health services. In response to this issue, the Virginia Health Care Foundation launched a grant program called Nurture Now, which integrates mental health service providers with rural Virginia school districts. In total, the foundation distributed $1.2 million to help schools cover salaries for mental health professionals.
Thanks to strong partnerships between community service boards, school systems and other local providers, 1,200 students received mental health services at their schools within the first year that Nurture Now was implemented.
Stories like this one show how much community agencies can solve by coming together to address local healthcare concerns as a team.
Sources
Marc Schollett, “Michigan lawmakers challenge rural healthcare funding criteria,” February 9, 2026, https://upnorthlive.com/news/local/michigan-lawmakers-challenge-rural-healthcare-funding-criteria, Up North Live.
Covista, “Covista Care Capacity Monitor,” https://www.covista.com/research
Mariah Taylor, “The current state of staff shortages, per executives,” February 10, 2026, https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/workforce/the-current-state-of-staff-shortages-per-executives/, Becker’s Hospital Review.
Emily Schabacker, “New mental health program meets kids where they are: at school,” January 12, 2026, https://cardinalnews.org/2026/01/12/new-school-based-program-shows-promise-for-youth-mental-health/, Cardinal News.
