# Illinois — Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) Illinois is currently implementing the Rural Health Transformation Program, having received federal award approval and allocated first-year funding. Led by the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, the program aims to expand equitable access and reduce barriers in rural areas through hospital transformation, workforce development, technology-enabled care, maternal and chronic disease priorities, and capacity-building for providers and community organizations. HFS is actively establishing governance structures, issuing NOFOs, advancing regional partnerships, supporting performance tracking, and engaging stakeholders as part of its multi-year plan. The structured plan continues to track multiple initiatives and strategic goals toward building a resilient rural healthcare delivery ecosystem. Current structured plan tracks 8 key initiatives and 12 strategic goals. ## At a glance - Federal awards to date: $383,876,670.24 (Year 1 $193.4M + Year 2 $190.5M) - Implementation phase (RCJ): IMPLEMENTING - Funding opportunities tracked: 13 (4 open or announced, 9 closed) - Critical Access Hospitals: 55 - Rural population share: 15% ## Current progress Illinois has released planning grant eligibility criteria and funding allocations for rural hospitals, enabling applications for sub-awards. State NOFOs are active or recently closed, with sub-awards already made to key networks such as ICAHN, which received $50M to administer technology and workforce grants for rural hospitals through June 2027. Over $30M is specifically allocated for technology upgrades at rural hospitals, and ICAHN is conducting needs assessments to direct additional funds for digital transformation. The state continues to support local procurement and the distribution of funds, with core hospital and provider subgrants underway. State opportunities: 9 active (1 open, 8 upcoming, 2 past/closed), $126.2M listed funding. Key opportunities: Illinois RHTP: Team-Based Care Grants for Primary Care and Behavioral Health Providers; Illinois RHTP: Disease Prevention Grants to Hospitals; Illinois RHTP: EMS and Mobile Healthcare — Mobile Health Infrastructure Funds. Strategy alignment: supports care access, prevention, ems priorities. ## CMS published status (State Data Maps) - State Policy Action commitments: 0 of 19 - Initiatives (8), current CMS stage of each: - Building a Resilient Rural Workforce - Healthcare Workforce Expansion — Stage 2 - Building a Resilient Rural Workforce - Rural Health Education Pipeline — Stage 2 - Building a Resilient Rural Workforce - Training Healthcare Support Workers — Stage 2 - Overcoming Geographic Barriers to Care - EMS and Mobile Healthcare — Stage 2 - Overcoming Geographic Barriers to Care - Technological Innovation for Virtual Care — Stage 2 - Transforming Rural Healthcare Delivery - Community Care Infrastructure — Stage 2 - Transforming Rural Healthcare Delivery - Hospital Disease Prevention — Stage 2 - Transforming Rural Healthcare Delivery - Hospital Transformation — Stage 2 - CMS data captured 2026-11-11, last confirmed 2026-11-11 ## Open and announced opportunities - [Illinois RHTP: EMS and Mobile Healthcare — Mobile Health Infrastructure Funds](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-ems-and-mobile-healthcare-mobile-health-infrastructure-funds--5d670b0fb2) — GRANT; Announced, not yet open - [Illinois RHTP: Healthcare Transformation Collaborative (HTC) Expansion](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-healthcare-transformation-collaborative-htc-expansion--c7ce565387) — GRANT; Open - [Illinois RHTP: Primary Care and Behavioral Health Technical Assistance](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-primary-care-and-behavioral-health-technical-assistance--fe977f54f1) — GRANT; Announced, not yet open - [Illinois RHTP: Team-Based Care Grants for Primary Care and Behavioral Health Providers](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-team-based-care-grants-for-primary-care-and-behavioral-health-prov--6cdce05148) — GRANT; Announced, not yet open; $98.0M ## Closed opportunities (9, most recent first) - [Illinois RHTP Hospital Transformation Planning Grant](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-hospital-transformation-planning-grant--cb060d2a82) — GRANT; Closed; due 2026-06-17; $28.2M - [Illinois Federal RHTP Award: Year 1 (FY 2026)](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-federal-rhtp-award-year-1-fy-2026--ca63fbfb5a) — AWARD; Closed; $193.4M - [Illinois Federal RHTP Award: Year 2 (FY 2027)](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-federal-rhtp-award-year-2-fy-2027--158950ccbd) — AWARD; Closed; $190.5M - [Illinois RHTP: Disease Prevention Grants to Hospitals](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-disease-prevention-grants-to-hospitals--3e656555c5) — GRANT; No deadline (noncompetitive; recipients selected by the state) - [Illinois RHTP: EMS Enhancement Grants to Resource Hospitals](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-ems-enhancement-grants-to-resource-hospitals--c2032be851) — GRANT; No deadline (noncompetitive; recipients selected by the state) - [Illinois RHTP: Expansion of Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Career Pathways Programming](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-expansion-of-area-health-education-center-ahec-career-pathways-pro--89e0db5f36) — GRANT; Closed - [Illinois RHTP: Expansion of Incentives and Training Programs for Clinical Professionals](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-expansion-of-incentives-and-training-programs-for-clinical-profess--4b80f53e3d) — GRANT; No deadline (noncompetitive; recipients selected by the state) - [Illinois RHTP: Expansion of Training and Certification Programs for Healthcare Support Workers](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-expansion-of-training-and-certification-programs-for-healthcare-su--9e3b3bc7f9) — GRANT; No deadline (noncompetitive; recipients selected by the state) - [Illinois RHTP: Investment in Technological Infrastructure for Rural Providers](https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/opportunities/illinois-rhtp-investment-in-technological-infrastructure-for-rural-providers--c4408f4f30) — GRANT; No deadline (noncompetitive; recipients selected by the state) ## Official sources RCJ monitors - [IL RHTP Primary](https://hfs.illinois.gov/info/fedresctr/ruralhealthtp.html) - [IL HFS Media/Press Releases](https://hfs.illinois.gov/info/media.html) - [IL RHTP Primary](https://www.icahn.org/rhtp) --- Source: Rural Care Journey (RCJ), https://www.ruralcarejourney.com/states/il — data as of 2026-11-11. Cite the RCJ page for the summary and the linked official source for authoritative terms, deadlines, and amounts.