North Dakota

North Dakota's Year-1 award is approximately $198.9 million, its share of the federal $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program. On February 25, 2026, CMS approved $194,807,869.55 of North Dakota's year-one budget, with the remaining $4,129,100 still under review to align the Notice of Award with the state's application. The program runs five years; Year-1 funds must be obligated by October 30, 2026 and fully spent by September 30, 2027.

North Dakota Health and Human Services (ND HHS) administers the program. In April 2026, ND HHS announced that Vincent Roehr and Douglas A. McMillan had joined the agency to help guide the RHTP. Program inquiries and vendor information go to rhtp@nd.gov.

North Dakota describes the RHTP as a five-year statewide investment to strengthen rural health care and help make North Dakota the healthiest state in the nation. ND HHS is prioritizing opportunities that build on existing infrastructure, partnerships and systems so it can move quickly within a tight spend-down window. The work is organized under four program pillars.

North Dakota RHTP hub →

• Initiative 1 — Make North Dakota Healthy Again ($17M total): behavioral health, wellness, and community programs (walking, gardens, Zero-Hour PE).
• Initiative 2 — Strengthen and Stabilize the Rural Health Workforce: retention, training, childcare, and workforce technology.
• Initiative 3 — Bring High-Quality Healthcare Closer to Home: telehealth, remote patient monitoring, mobile and facility-based care.
• Initiative 4 — Connecting Technology, Data and Providers for a Stronger ND.

Key project tags include EMS Sustainability, Tech Upgrades and Cardiac Care. The full allocation breakdown is set out in North Dakota's approved budget narrative.

North Dakota has been one of the most prolific states, releasing funding opportunities in rapid waves through the Qualtrics application system. Recent live opportunities include Rural Ambulance Modernization (FO 210-342) — about $22M, ~110 awards near $200,000, due August 9, 2026; Technology as an Extender (FO 210-231) — about $5M, ~20 awards near $250,000, due August 18, 2026; and the two Clinics without Walls opportunities, Telehealth Infrastructure (FO 210-331) (~$3.6M, due August 14) and Remote Patient Monitoring (FO 210-334) (~$1.6M, due August 14). Earlier rounds included the Rightsizing RFA (which names Eide Bailly as sole-source TA vendor), the $15M Ensuring Safety Net Service Delivery RFA, a $1.7M Behavioral Health Promotion Community Grant, wellness-equipment and workforce solicitations, and the initial Critical Access Hospital Workforce Retention RFA. The running record is in the dispatches below, newest first.

Deadlines are stacked in mid-August 2026: August 8 (Parents Lead), August 9 (Rural Ambulance Modernization), August 11 (Childcare for the Rural Health Workforce), August 14 (both Clinics without Walls opportunities) and August 18 (Technology as an Extender), most with technical-assistance calls in the days before. Across the program, Year-1 funds must be obligated by October 30, 2026 and fully spent by September 30, 2027. Live dates surface first in the dated dispatches below and on the state's funding page.

ND RHTP funding opportunities →

The Rural Health Transformation Program was created by Section 71401 of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (2025) and is administered federally by CMS. In North Dakota, CMS approved most of the state's year-one budget on February 25, 2026, allowing ND HHS to begin releasing funding opportunities in phases; the agency also hired dedicated RHTP program leads. Detailed allocation figures are set out in North Dakota's CMS-approved budget narrative.

Eligibility runs on two tracks. Direct-to-state contracts go out as competitive solicitations where firms bid as prime contractors (for example, sole-source technical-assistance roles like Eide Bailly's under the Rightsizing RFA). Subgrants and subawards flow to rural providers — hospitals, clinics, FQHCs, EMS and ambulance districts, tribes and tribal health organizations, public health units, schools and nonprofits — and it is here that technology vendors and consultants most often engage as subcontractors or implementation partners. North Dakota has confirmed that non-clinical systems (referral coordination, workforce tracking, reporting tools) may apply when aligned with RHTP goals.

Vendors can email product information to rhtp@nd.gov to be added to the state's interested-vendor list. Track opportunities on the ND RHTP hub and the funding opportunities page.