Connecticut received $154.2 million in Year 1 of the $50 billion federal Rural Health Transformation Program, 49th of 50 states. The Connecticut Department of Social Services (DSS) runs the program with partner state agencies, funding four initiatives and about 30 projects in rural areas of seven of the state's nine planning regions, from mobile primary care and dental vans to rural hospital transformation.
Spending data in the RHTP Year One Report covers December 29, 2025 to July 31, 2026, the latest CMS reporting window.
The award is fixed for the year. Spending moves every quarter, so Connecticut's section of the RHTP Year One Report tracks how much was put to work, and with whom, through July 31, 2026. It updates after each CMS data release.
Connecticut's RHTP funds four initiatives: population health, workforce, data and technology, and care transformation. About 30 projects sit under them, each run by DSS or a partner agency such as the Department of Public Health or the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.
Prevention and access projects, including mobile primary care and dental vans, nurse home visiting for new families, ACCESS Mental Health expansions, an older adult exercise program and outdoor recreation on the Air Line State Park Trail.
Rural provider retention incentives, rural residency grants, standardized nurse aide and medication administration training, licensure compact support and an expanded Area Health Education Center pipeline.
Expands the Connie health information exchange to rural providers, EMS and nursing homes, and builds shared IT and telehealth, a predictive analytics platform, a bed capacity tracking system and AI care management tools.
Rural hospital transformation and right-sizing grants, adult 23-hour crisis stabilization units, value-based payment, care coordination for primary care practices, a regional PACE program and regional collaboratives.
Recipients by initiative are in Connecticut's section of the RHTP Year One Report.
The approved plan has more detail than any summary: goals, partners, metrics and timelines for each initiative. Read it before responding to a Connecticut solicitation.
Rural areas in seven of Connecticut's nine planning regions can benefit from RHTP funding, including all of Northeastern Connecticut and Northwest Hills, the two regions that are entirely rural. Connecticut has no county government, so the plan uses planning regions and the federal Office of Rural Health Policy definition of rural, which counts about 323,000 rural residents, 9% of the state. A site's own rural status decides eligibility, and each solicitation states its own geographic requirements.
Check a site in HRSA's eligibility analyzer →Connecticut providers and vendors apply through solicitations from DSS and the partner agencies that run each project, posted on CTsource, the state contracting portal, and cross-referenced on the DSS RHTP page. DSS lists no open RHTP opportunities as of late October 2026. Providers and vendors don't apply to CMS directly.
Federal terms follow the money down to every Connecticut recipient.
A subaward makes your organization a subrecipient that carries out part of the program, with federal reporting and audit requirements. A contract pays for goods or services, with lighter requirements.
States can't post funding opportunities until CMS approves their budget, so windows can open months into a budget period.
Recruitment and retention payments require clinicians to commit to serving rural communities for at least five years.
Under the Stevens Amendment, websites, social posts and other public materials about a funded project must name the federal funding.
Connecticut's RHTP funding can pay for work on existing facilities, uncovered care, technology and administration, within federal caps on each use. Applied to Connecticut's Year 1 award, the maximums are:
Provider payments cover services insurance doesn't pay for, quality bonuses and outcome-based payments tied to Connecticut's plan. They can't raise rates for services providers already bill.
Capital funds go to existing facilities: renovations, accessibility upgrades, HVAC and like-for-like equipment replacement.
Connecticut committed to six policy actions in its application. Two are done. CMS can reduce or recover funding if the rest slip.
Propose substantial reforms to certificate of need rules
Public Act 26-68 signed; takes effect October 1, 2026Expand interstate licensure, including the EMS Personnel Licensure Interstate Compact
Public Act 26-13 signed in 2026Submit state legislation for a SNAP food restriction waiver
Pursue bringing back the Presidential Fitness Test in schools
Pursue nutrition continuing medical education requirements
Expand remote care services
Connecticut already belongs to the physician, nurse, psychology and physician assistant licensure compacts.
Year 1 is not a guaranteed annual amount. CMS plans up to $40 billion more nationwide through 2030 and rescores every state each year on progress, data and policy actions.
Funds not obligated by the end of a budget period can't be obligated later and are redistributed to other states.
CMS can withhold, reduce or recover money for unallowable costs, unapproved plan changes or missed policy commitments. States get 90 days to fix a violation, and most decisions can't be appealed.
CMS's Office of Rural Health Transformation plans site visits in all 50 states in 2026. Audits start in 2027.
Use the numbers in Connecticut's section of the RHTP Year One Report to understand direction and pace, not as an audit.
Obligated money is signed to a contract or grant. Cash reaches recipients later.
The data covers December 29, 2025 to July 31, 2026, as Connecticut reported it to CMS. Commitments made after July 31, 2026 are not counted yet.
The CMS report has no recipient column. Search Connecticut's line item descriptions by name.
CMS updates the data after each quarterly state report, starting with the November 30, 2026 filing.
Governor Lamont announces $50 million in grant agreements: $46 million to Day Kimball, Sharon, Windham and Charlotte Hungerford hospitals, and about $4 million to Mathematica for technical assistance.
The state announces $7.2 million in Year 1 funding for the Air Line State Park Trail in seven rural towns, part of a planned $40 million over five years.
Governor Lamont announces the $154 million grant, with DSS leading the program and partner agencies running its projects.
CMS awards Connecticut $154.2 million for Year 1.
DSS submits Connecticut's application to CMS.
Awards announced after July 31, 2026 are not in the CMS spending data yet. They will appear after the next CMS refresh.
Connecticut's largest Year 1 line is rural hospital transformation, and four rural hospital systems have signed agreements for $46 million in facility upgrades, equipment, telehealth, behavioral health and maternal services. The plan sets aside $25 million in Year 1 for right-sizing and infrastructure work, with more investment planned over five years.
About a dozen state agencies run Connecticut's projects, so solicitations can come from DMHAS, DPH, the Office of Early Childhood and others, not only DSS. Health information exchange, predictive analytics, shared IT and telehealth, bed capacity tracking and mobile care are the main technology and service lanes.
Build tracking for the metrics Connecticut reports to CMS before an award lands. Subrecipients can't opt out of reporting, and their results feed Connecticut's annual rescoring. Year 1 funds must be spent by September 30, 2027.
The Connecticut Department of Social Services (DSS) runs Connecticut's Rural Health Transformation Program with partner state agencies, using federal funding from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). DSS manages the state's plan, shares funding opportunities and answers questions at RHTP-Questions@ct.gov. The program is Connecticut's share of the $50 billion federal Rural Health Transformation Program.
Connecticut received $154,249,105 for Year 1 of the Rural Health Transformation Program, 49th of 50 states. Every state got $100 million in baseline funding, and the rest of Connecticut's award was based on its rural needs, its policy commitments and the strength of its plan. Later years depend on Connecticut's progress.
No. RHTP funds can't pay for new construction, demolition or major expansions. Up to 20% of Connecticut's award each year, about $30.8 million in Year 1, can go to work on existing facilities, such as renovations, accessibility upgrades, HVAC replacement and like-for-like equipment replacement.
Only for care that insurance doesn't already pay for. Provider payments can cover nonreimbursed services, quality bonuses and outcome-based payments tied to Connecticut's plan, up to 15% of the award each year, about $23.1 million in Year 1. They can't raise rates for services providers already bill.
The RHTP Year One Report tracks how much of Connecticut's award was put to work through July 31, 2026, by initiative and recipient, using state-reported data from CMS, and is updated after each CMS data release. Agreements finalized after July 31, such as $50 million in September 2026 grants to four rural hospital systems and Mathematica, will appear after the next CMS refresh.
These RHT Alliance members serve Connecticut providers, with support that spans EHR and billing, virtual nursing, virtual care, remote monitoring, health data, diagnostics, patient education and grant writing.
Azalea HealthCloud EHR and billing with AI-assisted charting for rural hospitals and clinics.
CorstrataTelehealth access to board-certified wound, ostomy and continence nurses.
Equum MedicalTelehealth-enabled physician coverage across specialties.
Health Recovery SolutionsRemote patient monitoring and care management at home.
InterSystemsHealth data platforms and interoperability.
Medical Equipment SourceDigital pathology, mobile labs and lab equipment services.
Rural Health Transformation Funding NetworkGrant writing support for RHTP funding opportunities.
Self Care DecisionsEvidence-based triage that directs patients to the right level of care.
Solid StartsInfant feeding guidance and education for families, built by pediatric feeding specialists.
Teledentistry.com24/7 virtual dental evaluations and emergency triage.
VitalChatVirtual nursing and continuous audio and video care across hospitals.
WebMD IgniteMedically reviewed patient education and outreach, including its HEART rural program.The RHTP Year One Report tracks obligations, initiatives and recipients for all 50 states after each CMS data release.