Rural health care providers in Rhode Island getting help

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Rural health care providers in Rhode Island are getting more than $650,000 in federal relief funds to help improve care and make up for losses incurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, officials said.

The federal grants, administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, can be used to pay salaries or recruit workers, purchase supplies or equipment, make capital investments, or cover other expenses related to preventing and responding to the pandemic, U.S. Sen. Jack Reed said in a statement Friday.

The federal funding will make 88 payouts to local health care providers and suppliers who serve rural communities and deliver care to Medicaid, Medicare, and Children’s Health Insurance Program beneficiaries.

“COVID-19 impacts us all and this federal funding will help ensure that health care practitioners who serve patients from rural areas can continue to reliably serve them and help combat this pandemic,” the Democrat said.