Federal Office of Rural Health Policy

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), a sub-agency of the Department of Health and Human Services, administers federal grant programs supporting rural health infrastructure, primary care capacity, and workforce development across the United States. HRSA funds health service delivery and training through grants to hospitals, health centers, academic institutions, and state and regional health organizations rather than through procurement contracts.

HRSA has obligated $5.58 billion in federal grant funding across 3,136 awards since 1979, distributed among 1,790 distinct recipients. Recent award cadence has contracted sharply: the agency issued 243 awards in 2022, 238 in 2023, 132 in 2024, 156 in 2025, and 31 year-to-date in 2026. The most recent award closed on September 30, 2026. All awards in the portfolio are structured as Project Grants with no other assistance types reported.

The recipient base is highly fragmented. The top five recipients by award count over the last five years — Mainehealth, Washington County Memorial Hospital, Michigan Center For Rural Health, University Of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute Inc., and Bighorn Valley Health Center Inc. — account for only 3 percent of recent awards. By federal dollars, the top five recipients control only 2 percent of obligated funding. Mainehealth leads by both count (7 awards, $25.8 million) and by dollars, followed by Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital ($18.4 million across 3 awards) and University Of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute Inc. ($16.3 million across 5 awards). The remaining 1,785 recipients hold the vast majority of the portfolio, indicating sustained distribution across a broad base of health service organizations.

The agency's grant activity is concentrated geographically and functionally in rural and underserved health delivery — primary care expansion, rural hospital stabilization, nursing and primary care workforce training, and telehealth infrastructure. No recent contract opportunities or grant opportunities are recorded in the source data. The sharp decline in awards from 2023 to 2024 and the minimal year-to-date volume in 2026 signal either restricted funding, a shift in program structure or award calendar, or a transition in solicitation timing that is not reflected in the current portfolio snapshot.