Health grants include maternal care access in Chambers County
CONTRIBUTED BY THE OFFICE OF GOV. KAY IVEY
MONTGOMERY — On Oct. 1, Gov. Kay Ivey announced the awarding of 34 grants totaling nearly $55 million to healthcare providers and institutions throughout the state as part of the second round of Alabama Rural Health Transformation Program funding for 2026. The grants will support projects covering rural areas across Alabama to improve healthcare access, quality and outcomes.
“Every Alabamian deserves access to quality care, and through the Rural Health Transformation Program, we are helping many providers and institutions improve healthcare for Alabamians throughout the state,” Ivey said. “I commend all the thoughtful efforts, from the federal policymakers and state administrators to our professional healthcare leaders, who are working hard to ensure the long-term success of this program. Once again, the Trump Administration is delivering meaningful results for real Americans.”
“The Trump Administration’s Rural Health Transformation Program is helping states like Alabama develop innovative, locally driven solutions to improve rural Americans’ access to high-quality care,” said Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz. “Today’s grant awards demonstrate how this historic investment is empowering rural communities to strengthen their health systems, put patients first, and bring better care closer to home.”
The ARHTP plan was developed by a team that included members from the Governor’s Office, the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs, the Alabama Department of Finance, the Alabama Medicaid Agency and the Alabama State Health Planning and Development Agency. ADECA administers ARHTP.
The second round of grant funding was awarded in five initiatives: Cancer Digital Regionalization, Statewide EMS Trauma and Stroke, EMS Treat in Place, Maternal and Fetal Health, as well as Simulation Training. Available funding was also awarded for additional projects in the Rural Health and Rural Workforce initiatives. The grants announced today round out year one of funding for the program.
During the first round of grant funding, which was announced in late August, projects in the Rural Health, Rural Workforce, Mental Health, Rural Health Practice and Collaborative Electronic Health Record, IT as well as Cybersecurity initiatives were awarded more than $144 million through 138 grants.
These projects are supported by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as part of a financial assistance award totaling $203,404,326.54 with 100% funded by CMS/HHS.
“The goal of improving rural healthcare in Alabama is of utmost importance, and we are grateful to Governor Ivey and the Legislature for their confidence in ADECA to administer this program,” said ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell. “The projects announced today as well as those announced earlier hold great potential for improving healthcare in a wide range of areas, and we look forward to seeing the progress as these projects move forward.”
Below are the funded projects impacting Chambers County and statewide initiatives:
The East Alabama Health Care Authority — $1.23 million to establish three community-based maternal health access points and connect them to East Alabama Health specialty and referral services in Barbour, Bullock and Chambers counties.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham (Maternal & Fetal Health) — $1 million to equip at least 20 rural hospitals statewide with emergency readiness labor and delivery carts, simulation resources, and training for obstetric and neonatal emergencies.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham (EMS Trauma & Stroke) — $3.44 million to expand Alabama’s statewide emergency care coordination system for trauma, stroke, cardiac and other time-sensitive conditions with the Alabama Trauma Communications Center.
The Children’s Hospital of Alabama — $288,542 to expand its pediatric emergency training program statewide for rural hospitals, EMS, outpatient clinics and school health personnel.
The Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences — $7.27 million to support the statewide residential high school in Demopolis preparing rural students for healthcare careers, including clinical placement transportation and provider partnerships.
Alabama Community College System — $20.6 million to establish a statewide rural healthcare workforce pipeline across Alabama community colleges, expanding local training for EMTs, nursing, respiratory therapy, radiologic technology and allied health fields.
