Ciscomani Leads Arizona Effort Advocating for Fair Allocation of Rural Health Transformation Program Funds

WASHINGTON - Congressman Juan Ciscomani is leading a bipartisan effort to ensure Arizona receives the federal funds it needs to support the healthcare challenges facing rural communities.

In a letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Ciscomani and four congressional colleagues from Arizona strongly endorsed the state's participation in the Rural Health Transformation Program, a measure empowering states to strengthen healthcare access, quality and outcomes in rural hospitals.

"We are sending this letter to CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz because we want to continue to send a clear message about the importance of rural healthcare in Arizona," Ciscomani said. "Our rural hospitals and clinics are lifelines for families. Access to the Rural Health Transformation Fund is critical to addressing the unique challenges they face and ensuring our healthcare infrastructure keeps pace with the needs of families, workers, and seniors across our state. We cannot afford to leave any Arizona community behind."

Ciscomani is joined in this bipartisan letter which highlights that CMS must use proper metrics that accurately account for the reality of rural life in Arizona by Arizona's U.S. Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego, as well as Arizona U.S. Representatives Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03) and Greg Stanton (AZ-04).

In part, the members wrote:

"Arizona's rural population is very dispersed, averaging 7.69 people per square mile. Arizona is the sixth-largest state in land area. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), specifically the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP), uses a detailed, multi-criteria definition to determine which areas are rural. Seven of Arizona's fifteen counties are classified as 100 percent rural. Each of Arizona's counties contains census tracts that meet HRSA's definition of rural."

Additionally, they added:

"Our rural populations face many challenges, such as access to healthcare - but also access to affordable childcare, housing, and career and educational opportunities. Incomes in these areas tend to be lower, and their are higher rates of unemployment. These issues compound their healthcare challenges."

"The healthcare needs of our rural communities are great, and it is critically important to us that Arizona gets its fair share of Rural Health Transformation Program dollars. An assessment conducted by the University of North Carolina resulted in a finding that Arizona ranked number 36 among the 50 states when ranked according to the criteria in the RHTP Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). This is not reflective of Arizona's landscape and reality."

The members concluded with:

"The needs in our rural communities have never been greater. The State of Arizona has worked collaboratively with Arizona's rural hospitals, clinics, and behavioral health providers to ensure that it has built a program that meets the needs of Arizona's rural communities, but it cannot do so if it does not receive the funds it requires."

"Arizona is one of the most rural states in America. Thank you for your attention to this matter and for ensuring that Arizona receives at least $200 million per year over five years. Given the vast area, significant needs of the State, and rurality of so many Arizonans, Arizona should receive much more than that in order to adequately address the significant needs of its rural communities."

You may click HEREto read the full letter.

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