The White House hosted a roundtable on January 16 to discuss new federal efforts to support rural health care. President Donald Trump highlighted a policy initiative, the Rural Health Transformation Program, which will allocate $50 billion over five years to help rural health care systems in all 50 states.
Andrew McCue, MD, a cardiologist at AdventHealth Gordon, participated in the event and shared perspectives on the needs of rural hospitals and strategies for improving access. Dr. McCue’s involvement underscores AdventHealth’s focus on providing accessible and coordinated care across its more than 2,000 sites nationwide, including in Florida, Georgia, Kansas, North Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin.
The Rural Health Transformation Program is designed to strengthen access to care in rural communities by giving states flexibility to invest in solutions that increase efficiency and modernize how care is delivered. The program aims to make it easier for patients to receive high-quality services close to home.
Dr. McCue commented on the importance of these investments: “Being a physician in rural Georgia, our communities have many needs,” Dr. McCue said. “Our goals are to expand access to care, improve efficiency and improve patients’ proximity to their doctors so that they can get high quality care close to home.”
The program also encourages collaboration between local providers and regional health systems. It supports workforce recruitment and retention as well as adoption of new models of care tailored for each community. Funding from the initiative may be used for facility upgrades and technology improvements so patients can access services without leaving their area.
As implementation begins, the focus remains on reliable and efficient health care centered on patient needs in rural settings.
AdventHealth Orlando is located in Orlando, Florida. Founded in 1908, it operates under current president Terry Shaw and includes both pediatric wards and training programs.
