Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP): What It Is and How Southeast EMS Fits
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In November, the State of Alaska submitted an application to the federal Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP)—a new, multi-year initiative from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services focused on strengthening rural and frontier health systems statewide. There will be a statewide webinar on RHTP and EMS on Thursday February 5th!
👉 Register here: →
What SEREMS and the Regions Did
Over the past year, SEREMS worked alongside Alaska’s other EMS regions and rural health partners to share data, lessons learned, and on-the-ground perspectives about delivering care in small, remote, and off-road communities. This regional input helped highlight the realities of emergency response, workforce shortages, uneven 911 and emergency medical dispatch coverage, training and funding gaps, and the importance of “care close to home” in rural Alaska.
Rather than submitting separate regional applications, Alaska’s regions contributed collectively to submit a single statewide response to the Request for Information led by the Alaska Department of Health. This approach was intended to ensure that rural voices statewide were reflected in the state’s priorities.
What the State Submitted
The state’s RHTP application outlines a broad, flexible framework for improving health care access, workforce capacity, technology, and financial sustainability across rural Alaska. Key focus areas include strengthening the health workforce, expanding technology and telehealth, improving emergency and specialty care access, supporting community-led solutions, and modernizing systems that serve rural and frontier populations statewide.
Importantly, the application emphasizes community-led and regionally designed efforts, recognizing that Alaska’s geography and health systems do not fit lower-48 rural models.
How This Aligns with SEREMS’ Ongoing Work
While RHTP funding decisions and implementation details are still unknown, many of the priorities outlined by the state overlap with work SEREMS and regional partners are already doing, including:
Strengthening and sustaining EMS services in small and remote communities
Workforce development, training, and retention
Simulation-based and hands-on education
Trauma and emergency system readiness
Improving coordination across providers and regions
As RHTP moves forward, we hope to help shape the opportunities it creates to build on existing regional efforts, rather than replace them. State partners have been responsive listeners as it unfolds.
Upcoming RHTP – EMS Discussion
The State of Alaska has scheduled a public meeting next week to discuss the Rural Health Transformation Program with respect to EMS. SEREMS staff will participate alongside other regional and statewide partners to better understand timelines, priorities, and opportunities for regional involvement. We hope you will too! lease show up, listen, ask the politely intemperate question when needed, and let’s make sure that we can leverage this five-year opportunity to set EMS up for the next several decades. It takes all of us to get this right.
At this stage, RHTP remains a federal review process, and timelines, funding levels, and implementation details are not yet finalized. SEREMS will continue to monitor developments, stay engaged with state partners, and share updates as more information becomes available.
Our goal is to continue to support strong, resilient emergency medical services and health systems across Southeast Alaska—and we are hopeful that this funding will facilitate that in many different ways. For more information or to sign up for updates, visit https://health.alaska.gov/en/education/rural-health-transformation-program/
