Empowering Rural Health Transformation Through Remote Patient Monitoring

Rural communities face unique healthcare challenges — long travel distances, workforce shortages, and high rates of chronic disease. The Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program,, authorized under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and administered by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), gives states a historic opportunity to address these challenges head-on.

By directing a portion of RHT funds toward Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM), states can help rural health centers and critical access hospitals extend their reach, improve outcomes, and build sustainable, technology-enabled models of care.

What Is the Rural Health Transformation Fund?

The Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program allocates $50 billion over five years (2026–2030) to help states redesign healthcare delivery in rural areas. The program’s goals are to strengthen access, improve outcomes, and foster innovation through prevention, workforce investment, and technology adoption.

States must apply funds toward at least three approved uses: expanding chronic care management, deploying technology-driven solutions, and supporting rural provider training and infrastructure.

With this flexibility, states have an unprecedented opportunity to invest in care models that address the root causes of rural health disparities. Remote Patient Monitoring directly supports each of the program’s priorities.

Remote Patient Monitoring: High Potential, Historic Barriers in Rural America

Remote Patient Monitoring enables patients to collect and share biometric data such as blood pressure, glucose, or weight from home. Providers can review readings in real time, identify concerning trends, and intervene earlier to prevent complications and costly hospitalizations.

For rural residents, where accessing in-person care often requires hours of travel, RPM can be transformative. Yet rural health centers have faced consistent barriers to building and scaling these programs:

• Connectivity and infrastructure gaps: Many rural areas lack reliable broadband, limiting device use.
  
• Staffing and workflow constraints: Small clinical teams often lack capacity to implement and monitor new technology workflows.
  
• Upfront costs: Devices, software, and training require investment before reimbursement revenue begins.
  
• Sustainability challenges: Until 2024, Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) did not receive any reimbursement for Remote Patient Monitoring. In 2024, RHCs could bill for RPM under a general care management code, G0511, and in 2025, CMS eliminated the consolidated code, allowing RHCs to bill the same CPT codes for RPM as other healthcare providers. Still, grant funds can supplement reimbursement funds and enable RHCs to offer programs to more patients.

These are precisely the challenges that RHT funds are designed to address.

How States Can Use RHT Funds to Expand RPM

1. High-Risk Pregnancy Monitoring
Pregnant women in rural communities face higher rates of complications and maternal mortality. With RHT support, rural health centers can provide connected blood pressure and glucose monitors to expectant mothers at risk for preeclampsia or gestational diabetes.

Clinicians can review readings remotely, flag concerning trends, and intervene sooner — improving outcomes for both mothers and babies while reducing unnecessary travel.

2. Food as Medicine + RPM
“Food as Medicine” programs address nutrition insecurity by connecting patients to healthy foods and nutrition education. Pairing these programs with RPM enables measurable, data-driven outcomes.

Participants can track biometric improvements like lower blood pressure or glucose levels as their access to nutritious food improves. RHT funds could support device procurement, patient onboarding, and data analysis to demonstrate the clinical impact of nutrition interventions.

3. Scaling Rural RPM Infrastructure
Many rural health centers have piloted RPM programs but struggle to scale. RHT funding can bridge that gap — covering cellular-enabled devices that don’t rely on broadband, training care managers, and integrating RPM data into EHR workflows.

Once established, programs can sustain themselves through existing RPM reimbursement codes and value-based care arrangements.

Why RPM Aligns with RHT Goals

Every RHT priority is advanced by Remote Patient Monitoring:

• Chronic disease management: Continuous, proactive care for hypertension, diabetes, and more.
  
• Technology-driven innovation: Expanding digital care models and data sharing.
  
• Workforce efficiency: Enabling clinicians to manage more patients with fewer in-person visits.
  
• Sustainable access: Reducing transportation barriers and supporting local care.
  
• Evidence-based results: RPM provides measurable data on outcomes and cost savings.
  

As states plan how to allocate their Rural Health Transformation funds, Remote Patient Monitoring represents one of the most impactful, scalable, and sustainable investments available.

By using RHT funds to overcome infrastructure, training, and startup barriers, states can empower rural health centers to deliver connected, patient-centered care that improves outcomes and reduces disparities.

At Rimidi, we’ve seen how data-driven RPM transforms chronic disease management, helping providers engage patients beyond the clinic walls. With strategic investment from the RHT Fund, states can help rural communities thrive by making connected care the new standard of care.