S. 1282 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the Senate, Apr 3, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryRural hospitals get USDA help and training
This bill sets up a program in the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help hospitals in small rural towns. The program would provide expert advice and training to help these hospitals figure out what they need to improve—like fixing up buildings, adding telehealth services so patients can see doctors online, or upgrading their computer systems for patient records. The program would also help hospital leaders with their finances and teach them how to apply for USDA loans and grants.
How it affects you
If you live in a rural area with a small population, this could mean your local hospital gets better equipped and runs more smoothly, which affects the quality of health care available to you and your neighbors. The program focuses especially on hospitals that already work with USDA, so those facilities would likely see the biggest difference first.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Apr 3, 2025)
Rural Development Hospital Technical Assistance Program Act of 2025
This bill provides statutory authority for the Rural Hospital Technical Assistance Program within the Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Under the bill, USDA must establish and maintain (directly or by grant, contract, or cooperative agreement) a program to help eligible hospital facilities in rural areas (i.e., an area with a population of 50,000 inhabitants or less).
The program must provide tailored technical assistance and training to hospital facilities to identify development needs for maintaining essential health care services and support action plans for financial, operational, and quality improvement projects to meet these needs. Development needs include (1) constructing, expanding, and modernizing health care facilities; (2) increasing telehealth capabilities; and (3) acquiring or upgrading health care information systems (e.g., electronic health records).
The program must also provide technical assistance and training to help hospital facilities to better manage their financial and business strategies and identify, and apply for assistance from, USDA loan and grant programs.
In selecting eligible hospital facilities to participate in the program, USDA must give priority to borrowers of loans and recipients of grants from certain USDA rural assistance programs.
USDA must also submit an annual report to Congress on the progress and results of the program.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 1282
A BILL
Rural Development Hospital Technical Assistance Program Act of 2025
Sponsor: Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) · Introduced Apr 3, 2025 · Agriculture and Food · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Apr 3, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.”