Appropriations - Fiscal Year 2010
In an effort to ensure full funding of essential federal rural health programs, NRHA is constantly monitoring the federal appropriations process. Here you will find the latest news, updates and supporting materials on the funding of federal rural health programs.
Please note, the federal fiscal year (FY) begins October 1 and ends September 30. The year mentioned in the FY 2010 portion refers to the calendar year that the FY runs until. So, FY 2010 will take place from October 1, 2009, to September 30, 2010.
FY 2010 Appropriations Resources
- Click here to view the NRHA appropriations chart.
- Appropriations rural information specific to each state
FY 2010 Appropriations News
President sign appropriations omnibus
December 16, 2009 - President Obama signed into law the Fiscal 2010 Consolidated Appropriations Act, funding the rural health programs for the rest of the fiscal year. The legislation would provide $446.8 billion in discretionary spending (and $1.1 trillion overall) for the six bills funded by the measure: Commerce-Justice-Science, Financial Services, Labor-HHS-Education, Military Construction-VA, State-Foreign Operations, and Transportation-HUD.
The bill had previously passed the House by a vote of 221-202 and the Senate by a vote of 57-35. FY 2010 officially began October 1, but most of the federal government has been funded by a continuing resolution that expires December 18.
The Labor-HHS-Education bill included $163.6 billion in discretionary spending. It included $58 million for rural health outreach grants, $142 million for the National Health Service Corps, $10.1 million for state offices of rural health, and $33.3 million for area health education centers, among other rural programs. The numbers were largely in line with NRHA's requests for this fiscal year.
Overall, rural programs received a 7% increase in funding, a clear success in tight economic times.
House passes appropriations bill with significant increases for rural programs.
July 24, 2009 - The House passed H.R. 3293, the appropriations bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education by a vote of 264 to 153. The bill matched NRHA’s requests for the rural programs and also provided increases for other programs important to rural health. Chairman Obey (D-WI-07), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee and longtime rural champion, said that the bill “makes vital investments to train people for jobs, shores up health and social safety nets to provide relief for millions of hard-working Americans caught in a struggle for economic survival, and provides the educational opportunities that are critical to the nation’s longer-term prosperity.”
The Health Resources and Services Administration, home to the rural health programs, receives an increase of over $70 million over FY 2009. The bill includes $56.6 million for Rural Outreach Grants, $9.7 million for State Offices of Rural Health, $141.8 million for the National Health Service Corps, $41.2 million for Rural Hospital Flexibility Grants, and $41.9 million for geriatric training programs, an $11 million increase over FY 2009.
For the complete listing of funding levels for rural programs, see the recent NRHA Appropriations Chart.
For the Appropriations Committee’s summary, click here.
For the full bill text and committee report, click here and here.
NRHA submits FY 2010 requests to the House Budget Committee - March 20
As we do every year, NRHA has submitted requests for the funding of critical rural health programs to the House Budget Committee. NRHA is advocating for full funding for a group of rural health programs that assist a large percentage of rural communities in building a stronger health delivery systems for the future. These programs have been successful in increasing access to health care in rural areas, helping communities create new health programs for those in need and training the future health professionals that will give care to rural America. With modest investments, these programs are able to evaluate, study and implement quality improvement programs and health information technology systems. In addition, the coming health care reforms necessitate an added investment in programs that develop the health care workforce in order to ensure access to care for all patients, especially those in rural America who already face large barriers to care.
The Budget Committee is expected to begin marking up the FY 2010 budget on March 25. NRHA will also be submitting requests to the Senate Budget Committee.
To read NRHA's letter, click here.
President Obama releases his budget overview - February 26
President Obama released his budget overview, outlining his priorities including a "historic commitment to comprehensive health care reform." According to Obama, "We must make it a priority to give every single American quality, affordable health care... It's a step that will not only make families healthier and companies more competitive, but over the long term it will also help us to bring down our deficit."
Some of the highlights of the budget overview are:
- Strengthens regional and local partnerships among rural health care providers, expanding community-based prevention interventions and promoting the modernization of the health care infrastructure in rural areas
- Accelerates the adoption of health information technology and utilization of electronic health records
- Strengthens the Indian health system with sustained investments in health care services for American Indians and Alaska Natives to address persistent health disparities and foster healthy Indian communities
- Invests $330 million to increase the number of doctors, nurses and dentists practicing in areas of the country experiencing shortages of health professionals
- Strengthens the Medicare program by encouraging high quality and efficient care and improving program integrity
- Invests over $1 billion for Food and Drug Administration food safety efforts to increase and improve inspections, domestic surveillance, laboratory capacity and domestic response to prevent and control foodborne illness
NRHA is very supportive of funding for critical rural health programs and awaits details on funding for those programs. NRHA appreciates Obama's recognition of the unique challenges inherent in providing quality health care in rural America and support for the dedicated individuals and programs that ensure that rural Americans receive the care they need. We will continue to advocate on behalf of these programs as the president's final budget is developed.
The complete document, "A New Era of Responsibility: Renewing America's Promise," can be found here.
