Last week, on Dec. 29, 2025, the White House announced that every state will automatically receive $100 million annually in federal funding designed to help the desperate situation facing rural hospitals, and that every state has the opportunity to apply for additional funding in the form of federal grants, on condition they present plans to transform rural health programs in accordance with the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. These ballyhooed goodies are part of the July 4 passing of the “Big Beautiful Bill,” and were offered as a sop for passage of the bill, given that it will undercut what remains of rural hospital facilities by reducing Medicaid funding and similar measures.
The cuts to Medicaid alone in the Big Beautiful Bill will cause losses of billions to rural hospitals. According to an analysis from the office of U.S. Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC), his state of North Carolina is expected to lose $32 billion over the next ten years from these Medicaid cuts. Even privately insured patients will see healthcare costs rise, since providers will be desperate to recoup their losses.
