Eligibility and Application Process

Program Eligibility

Eligible Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project (RHPTP) applicants include small rural hospitals and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)-certified rural health clinics that are not actively receiving similar TA from other federal or state programs.

Health care organizations that are located in geographic areas that are defined as rural are eligible to apply for RHPTP.  Use the Rural Health Grants Eligibility Analyzer to determine eligibility.

• Clinics MUST be a certified Rural Health Clinic.
• Hospitals must meet the following eligibility requirements below.

1. Is located in a rural area as defined in 42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d), treated as if located in a rural area pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(8)(C), or located in a FORHP rural area.
2. Has 49 available beds or less, as reported on the hospital’s most recently filed Medicare Cost Report.
3. Small rural hospitals may be for-profit or not-for-profit, including faith-based. Small rural hospitals in U.S. territories as well as tribally operated hospitals under Titles I and V of P.L 93-638 [PDF] tribally operated hospitals under Titles I and V of P.L. 93-638 [PDF] may receive TA if they meet the other criteria in this section

In addition, applicant organizations:

• Must not be a current participant in an advanced alternative payment model (Advanced APM) as defined by CMS.
• Must be financially stable. Applicants should consider their past and present performance as compared to national benchmarks on key performance indicators (days cash on hand, total margin, operating margin, patient revenue, days in net accounts receivable, payor mix, etc.) as well as non-measurable variables such as leadership stability and succession planning for retiring primary care providers. (Applicants can use resources like CAHMPAS and the Small Rural Hospital and Clinic Finance 101 guide to help determine financial stability.)
• Must be interested in and motivated to become part of an alternative payment model (APM).
• Must, if a small rural hospital, be meeting the quality data reporting requirements of Inpatient Quality Reporting, Outpatient Quality Reporting, or the Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project.
• Must not be a current participant in any other technical assistance program offered at the state or federal level that is duplicative of services.
• Must not be located in one of the 255 counties or parishes in the Delta Regional Authority Service Area. For technical assistance programs available in this area, please see Delta Region Community Health Systems Development Program.
• Must not be located within a rural area of the 13 states in the Appalachian Region. For TA programs available in this area, please see Appalachian Region Healthcare Technical Assistance Program for available technical assistance services. 
• Organizations that do not meet the eligibility requirements for RHPTP are encouraged to explore other technical assistance opportunities through the Rural Health Information Hub’s (RHIhub) TA Finder tool. FORHP Rural Hospital & Rural Health Clinic Technical Assistance Finder - Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health Grants Eligibility Analyzer

• Health care providers who are located in geographic areas that are defined as Rural are eligible to apply for Rural Health Grants. Enter an address or choose a state and county to check for eligibility status.

   

Application Process

Apply

Applications for the RHPTP FY26 project period (September 1, 2026–August 31, 2027) will be accepted through October 9, 2026. Organizations interested in participating in the FY26 cohort are encouraged to submit their applications by the deadline.

Applications can be made by individual health care organizations (critical access hospitals, small rural hospitals, rural health clinics), jointly by a hospital and a rural health clinic or clinics, or by a consortium of rural health clinics.

Each submitted application is followed by a 90-minute phone interview with members of the RHPTP team. Planning for the next cohort year is currently in progress.

The annual selection of organizations for RHPTP-focused virtual technical assistance is contingent upon funding approval for each project year. For more information, please refer to the Application Interview Process Guide below.