Rural Hospital Flexibility Program

The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 established the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility Grant Program with the intent to assist rural hospitals and improve access through critical access hospital (CAH) designation. The Flex program provides funding to States for the designation of Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) in rural communities. Since Kentucky has no other hospitals eligible to convert to CAH status, the Flex program in the state has evolved into a program that assists Kentucky’s 28 CAHs through technical assistance, training, cohort and network activities, etc. to spur quality and performance improvement activities; stabilize rural hospital finance; and integrate emergency medical services (EMS) into their health care systems. The Flex Program in Kentucky focuses on the following three criteria: 1. Support for Quality Improvement in CAHs with an emphases on MBQIP 2. Support for Operational and Financial Improvement in CAHs 3. Support for Health System Development and Community Engagement, including integrating EMS in regional and local systems of care Major focuses of the Flex Program in Kentucky throughout the 3 year Flex project period will be encouraging and assisting the 28 CAHs in the state to report and improve their MBQIP scores, to support financial improvement in CAHs across the state through trainings and technical assistance, to address the population health needs of the state by first doing a population health needs assessment and to work to integrate EMS into local systems of care. Work will be accomplished and completed by the Kentucky Office of Rural Health Flex Program as well as through contractual partnerships with the Kentucky Hospital Association, The Community and Economic Development Initiative of Kentucky and the Kentucky Board of Emergency Medical Services as well as other non-contractual partners across the state.