Expanding access, lowering costs, and growing Delaware’s Health Care workforce
Transforming Health Care
Delaware’s Rural Health Transformation Program
The State of Delaware’s Rural Health Transformation Program will dramatically expand health care access, lower costs, and increase grow our state’s medical workforce. With a $157 million federal award for the first year alone, this program has the potential to revolutionize medical care in every community.
Our objective — to improve health outcomes for all Delawareans, regardless of income or zip code.
“A generational plan focused on expanding access to care and supporting rural communities from the ground up.”
All Delawareans deserve access to quality health care, no matter where they live.
Delaware’s Rural Health Transformation Program includes 15 projects, programs and initiatives that will:
Projects, Programs, and Initiatives
Expanding Access to Care
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Health Hubs
Funds will be competitively awarded to support mobile units and/or other non-traditional access points.
Now accepting RFP applications!
Year 1 Budget: $5,483,730.00
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School-Based Health Centers
Funds will be competitively awarded to support operation of new school-based health centers.
Now accepting RFP applications!
Year 1 Budget: $195,000.00
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Libraries
Funds will be competitively awarded to rural libraries for support services for patients engaging in telehealth.
Year 1 Budget: $1,835,000.00
Affordable Care to Manage Chronic Diseases
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Hope Centers
Funds will support establishment and operation of two new Hope Centers to address health needs of rural homeless population.
Year 1 Budget: $26,370,000.00
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Food Is Medicine infrastructure
Funds will be competitively awarded to a vendor to support sustainable Food Is Medicine initiatives.
Now accepting RFP applications!
Year 1 Budget: $1,648,000.00
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Continuous glucose monitoring
Funds will be competitively awarded to a vendor to pilot a continuous glucose monitoring program.
Year 1 Budget: $950,000.00
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Telehealth and remote patient monitoring
Funds will be competitively awarded to vendors deploying innovative telehealth and remote patient monitoring tools.
Year 1 Budget: $5,000,000.00
Growing Delaware’s Health Care Workforce
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Create Delaware’s first 4-year medical school
Funds will be competitively awarded to support start-up costs for a medical school branch campus.
Now accepting RFP applications!
Year 1 Budget: $42,500,000.00
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Support medical students
Tuition awards will go to medical students who commit to 5 years practice in rural Delaware.
Year 1 Budget: $1,100,000.00
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Support non-physician clinicians
Tuition awards for non-physician health care workers who commit to serve in rural Delaware.
Year 1 Budget: $1,000,000.00
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Expand training programs
Funds will be awarded to support training programs for non-physician health care workers.
Year 1 Budget: $20,910,000.00
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Support medical residents
Awards will go to medical residents that commit to 5 years practice in rural Delaware.
Year 1 Budget: $1,236,495.00
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Workforce data
Funds will support a vendor-managed technology product that supports implementation of SB122 and related workforce data needs.
Year 1 Budget: $2,685,200.00
Prepare the Health Care System for the Future
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Value-based care transformation
Funds will support rural health care providers and FQHCs to move towards value-based care, including preparing to take on upside and downside risk and be held accountable for total cost of care and population health outcomes.
Year 1 Budget: $24,322,042.48
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Real-Time insurance verification and prior authorization
Funds will support vendor operation of a novel statewide, cloud-based prior authorization and health data exchange network.
Year 1 Budget: $6,420,000.00
What is the status of Delaware’s Rural Health Transformation Program?
| Date | Update |
|---|---|
| December 2025 | Delaware secures more than $157.4 million in federal funding to support the Rural Health Transformation in the first year. |
| November 2025 | The State of Delaware submits an application for up to $1 billion from the Rural Health Transformation Program. |
| August 2025 | Delaware Governor Matt Meyer asks First State residents for their input on how best to reshape the health care landscape in rural Delaware through a major federal funding program. |
Where can I learn more about Rural Health Transformation Program?
Please direct all inquiries to dhssinfo@delaware.gov.
About Delaware’s Rural Health Transformation Plan
These projects will be supported by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $157.4 million with 100 percent funded by CMS/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by CMS/HHS, or the U.S. Government.
Rural Health Related documents
Delaware Rural Health Transformation Program Executive Budget Summary
What is Delaware’s rural health landscape?
Delaware’s rural health landscape reflects the pressures of a small but rapidly transforming state with stark disparities between its northern urban areas and southern rural counties. Roughly 38-40% of Delaware residents – about 400,000 people – live in these rural areas, facing healthcare challenges that far exceed their geographic footprint. Sussex County embodies Delaware’s rural health crisis.