Grants Will Benefit More Than 38,000 Rural Hoosiers
INDIANAPOLIS July 25, 2023 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development Indiana State Director Dr. Terry Goodin announced that USDA is expanding access to health care for more than 38,000 Hoosiers living in three counties.
“USDA Rural Development promotes a healthy community and environment through grants to make sure rural Hoosier families and individuals have access to the health care they need,” Goodin said. “USDA’s Emergency Rural Health Care Grants program play a key role in strengthening rural America’s health care infrastructure and building capacity for the future.”
USDA is awarding more than $1 million in Emergency Rural Health Care Grants to improve health care facilities in three rural areas across Indiana. These grants will help rural health care organizations expand critical services.
- Perry County Memorial Hospital is using the grant to renovate a portion of their clinic in Tell City, Indiana. The renovations create a more functional and improved clinic and provide a separate entrance for potential positive COVID-19 patients. A new canopy attached to the clinic assists with providing car care for testing and vaccinations. The renovation will include three new exam rooms, one designated as a negative pressure room for improved safe care for COVID-19 patients. In addition, the construction will include an installation of an Americans with Disabilities Act compliant and accessible restroom, renovated lab space, and dedicated nurse’s station. This project will allow the safe separation of suspected COVID 19-positive patients from other patients receiving routine treatment.
- The City of Peru is using the grant to purchase an ambulance. This purchase will provide residents with high-quality care in all medical situations, including COVID-19 and medical surges, and be able to provide dependable transportation to health care providers. The city of Peru is a rural community with a population of 11,417. This investment will serve this rural community located in Miami County, Indiana.
- In Charlestown, Indiana, LifeSpring Inc. is using the grant to renovate a building. LifeSpring Inc. will utilize this property as a medical clinic to provide primary care, vaccine distribution, testing, and behavioral health care services to the residents of Charlestown. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the lack of services in this area.
“Because we know a strong community is rooted in its people. Rural Hoosier towns are a gathering place where first responders put people’s safety first and hospitals care for everyone,” Goodin said. “These solutions will build a stronger, more sustainable rural health care system for Indiana’s small towns and communities.”
Background: Emergency Rural Health Care Grants
Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in March 2021 to deliver immediate economic relief to people impacted by the pandemic. Within months after the Act’s passage, USDA responded quickly by making this funding available to ensure the long-term availability of rural health care services.
In August 2021, USDA made the Emergency Rural Health Care Grants available through the American Rescue Plan Act to help rural health care facilities, tribes and communities expand access to health care services and nutrition assistance.
The assistance is helping provide immediate relief to support rural hospitals, health care clinics and local communities. USDA is administering the funds through Rural Development’s Community Facilities Program.
Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural, tribal and high-poverty areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov/in. If you’d like to subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit the GovDelivery subscriber page.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate-smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov/in.
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