The Texas Department of Health and Human Services published an “Intent to Award” list through the Rural Health Transformation Programs to hospitals throughout the state this week, with several West Texas facilities on the list.
The federal initiative is slated to provide $50 billion throughout all 50 U.S. states from 2026 through 2030, at a cost of $10 billion per year.
Created through the Working Families Tax Cuts Act and administered by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the program aims to strengthen rural healthcare access, infrastructure, and innovation.
On July 4, 2025, President Trump signed a budget bill, once called the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” This law cuts federal healthcare spending and reduces taxes by lowering federal Medicaid spending by $911 billion over the next ten years, including a $137 billion cut from rural areas.
To address the challenges faced by rural areas, the law established the Rural Health Transformation Program, known as the “rural health fund” which will provide $50 billion in state grants from 2026 to 2030 to support health care in rural areas.
The following applications for the d Texas Strong program have reached “Intent to Award” status as of October 8, 2026.
A grant is not officially awarded until a contract is fully executed. This status means HHSC has completed negotiations and will issue a contract agreement for the grant.
According to the news release from HHS, applications are being processed quickly, but HHSC cannot guarantee when all awards will be finalized due to high volume.
- Ballinger Memorial Hospital
- Concho County Hospital
- Heart of Texas Memorial Hospital
- Nolan County Hospital District
- Pecos County Memorial Hospital District
- Permian Basin Community Centers for Mental Health
- Reagan Hospital District
- Sutton County Hospital District
- Rankin County Hospital District
- Val Verde Hospital Corporation
- West Texas Center for MHMR
Awards were also listed relating to hospital leasing in Eldorado and Coleman.
Here is a link to the HHS page regarding the program:
https://pfd.hhs.texas.gov/rural-health-transformation-program
