INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Eight regions across Indiana have applied for a combined $120 million in Grow Rural Opportunities for Well-being (GROW) grants, a centerpiece of Gov. Mike Braun’s focus on improving healthcare access and affordability.
“Through the GROW grants and the Rural Health Transformation Program, Indiana is making historic investments to ensure every Hoosier can access quality care close to home,” Gov. Mike Braun said. “By empowering local coalitions and expanding innovative solutions, we are transforming rural healthcare and delivering real results for families across our state.”
The GROW grant application process brought rural healthcare providers, emergency medical services (EMS), community organizations, local foundations and other regional partners together to reimagine what healthcare can look like in rural Indiana. The eight proposals, submitted July 1, are the product of months of grassroots collaboration from those who know their neighbors and their needs best.
GROW is part of the federal Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP), which provides Indiana with nearly $207 million for the first year of the five-year initiative. The program is administered by the Family and Social Services Administration and the Indiana Department of Health, under Gov. Braun’s direction, to improve rural healthcare outcomes.
The eight GROW regional grants are 60% of that funding and are designed to deliver measurable results for healthier moms and babies, faster access to care, greater availability of nutritious food, stronger defenses against chronic disease, and a bigger rural health workforce.
The eight proposals are under review and grant awards will be announced by Sept. 1. As these coalitions move from planning to implementation, Indiana is setting the standard for how strong local leadership, targeted investment and community partnership can transform rural healthcare.
“Our team is scrutinizing the proposals to ensure this funding is used responsibly to fulfill the mission of RHTP,” said Indiana State Health Commissioner Lindsay Weaver, M.D., FACEP. “I am excited about the promise of these proposals to bring meaningful improvement to the delivery of care and future rural health outcomes.”
“Indiana’s current healthcare cost‑growth trajectory is unsustainable, especially for our rural communities,” said Secretary of the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration Mitch Roob. “The GROW grants give us a rare and important opportunity to invest in the future of rural healthcare by allowing local partners to test innovative solutions tailored to the challenges they face every day. By empowering communities to try new approaches and learn what truly works, we can chart a more affordable, more effective path forward for rural Hoosiers.”
Proposals include innovative solutions such as:
- Expanded access to early prenatal care, including supports to help pregnant women overcome transportation, scheduling and insurance barriers so they can enter care earlier in pregnancy.
- Food‑as‑medicine programs that pair nutrition classes with medically tailored produce boxes for families with chronic conditions.
- Bringing maternal care closer to home through home‑based visits, mobile maternal health services, telehealth-enabled prenatal check‑ins, and remote monitoring for conditions such as hypertension and gestational diabetes.
- Integrated maternal health pathways that link clinical care with nutrition services, transportation assistance, behavioral health support, and community‑based outreach to ensure families receive coordinated help throughout pregnancy and beyond.
- An innovative multi-county specialty telehealth network connecting rural clinics directly to specialists that eliminates travel time and brings specialty care within reach of every Hoosier, no matter their ZIP code.
- A care navigation network linking hospitals, health departments, EMS, schools, behavioral health providers and social services into one seamless system of support.
- Transforming community spaces such as rural libraries, community centers, and extension offices, into local telehealth access points to bring health care closer to home than ever before.
The applications complement the other 11 RHTP statewide initiatives that support innovation, strategic partnerships, infrastructure development and workforce investment. A map of the eight regions, coalition members and more information about the GROW regional grant program as well as the other initiatives is available on the RHTP website.
This Rural Health Transformation Program is supported by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $206,927,896.80 with 100 percent funded by CMS/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by CMS/HHS, or the U.S. Government.