USDA Awards $8.4 Million in Grants to Rural Iowa Hospitals in 12 Counties to Improve Health Care for Iowans

State Director Greenfield announces Emergency Rural Health Care Grants for facilities in Calhoun, Clayton, Delaware, Hamilton, Humboldt, Mahaska, Mitchell, Monroe, Page, Poweshiek, Sioux, and Wright counties

GRINNELL, Iowa, Nov. 17, 2022 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development State Director in Iowa Theresa Greenfield today announced that USDA is awarding $8,464,200 in grants for 17 health care projects in 12 Iowa counties to expand access to health care. The Biden-Harris Administration made these funds available in the Emergency Rural Health Care Grants Programs through its historic legislative package, the American Rescue Plan Act.

National Rural Health Day is the perfect time to showcase the significant contributions that USDA is making for health care infrastructure in rural Iowa,” said Director Greenfield. “Our rural neighbors face unique challenges in obtaining personalized health care in remote and underserved parts of our state. Today, under the leadership of President Biden and Vice President Harris, USDA Rural Development is helping create better access to medical services across Iowa.”

Director Greenfield made the announcement as she toured Grinnell Regional Medical Center with hospital leadership, administrators, and local officials.

National Rural Health Day is celebrated the third Thursday of November each year to recognize the efforts of rural health care providers, organizations, and stakeholders as they work to promote better care for rural residents.

The 13 Iowa grant recipients are:

-Humboldt County Memorial Hospital in Humboldt is receiving a $69,200 grant to purchase a patient monitoring system.

-Opportunity Living in Lake City, Calhoun County, is receiving $86,700 to purchase and install a wheelchair ramp and a sliding entrance door with motion detection sensors to improve accessibility to the licensed intermediate care facility.

-The city of Hawarden in Sioux County is receiving $1 million to purchase a magnetic resonance imaging machine for Hawarden Regional Hospital. The project will also construct a modular building next to the hospital to facilitate imaging services.

-Mahaska County Hospital in Oskaloosa is receiving a total of $619,300 in three separate grants: $188,800 will be used to help upgrade two service elevators and install a new security monitoring system; $257,900 will be used to purchase an information technology system to increase data storage; and $172,600 will be used to make heating and cooling improvements.

-Greater Sioux Community Health Center in Sioux County is receiving $487,000 to help add 9,900 square feet to the facility in Sioux Center to enable better COVID-19 testing and care and to prepare for future pandemics.

-Hamilton County Hospital, doing business as Van Diest Medical Center, in Webster City is receiving two grants for a total of $751,000: $540,200 to purchase information technology infrastructure equipment including servers, wireless systems, backup servers, and telephone systems, as well as new hospital beds; $210,800 will help purchase two new ambulances, six advanced life support monitors and a power lift.

-The city of Clarinda in Page County is receiving $1 million to help Clarinda Regional Health Center purchase a new magnetic resonance imaging machine.

-Guttenberg Municipal Hospital in Clayton County is receiving $364,800 to purchase a nurse call system, ventilators, and personal protective equipment.

-Delaware County Memorial Hospital in Manchester is receiving $423,500 to purchase a new ambulance, a computerized tomography scanner, and an ultrasound machine.

-Iowa Specialty Hospital-Clarion in Wright County is receiving $1 million to renovate and expand the labor, delivery, recovery, and postpartum rooms.

-Monroe County Hospital in Albia is receiving $1 million to remodel 1,100 square feet of hospital space to create an isolation room, two patient rooms, and a consultation area.

-Grinnell Regional Medical Center in Poweshiek County is receiving two grants: $535,300 to help divide the shared emergency room and radiology waiting room into two separate waiting rooms, relocate and expand the admissions area, and enlarge the women’s health clinic; and $464,700 to expand the laboratory.

-Mitchell County Memorial Hospital is receiving $662,700 to expand a health clinic in Riceville by constructing a 3,000-square foot addition to address the impact of long COVID-19 cases, increase access to COVID-19 vaccines and testing, and provide family medicine and mental health service options.

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.

Contact USDA Rural Development

 USDA Rural Development has 11 offices across the state to serve the 1.7 million Iowans living in rural communities and areas. Office locations include a state office in Des Moines, along with area offices in Albia, Atlantic, Humboldt, Indianola, Iowa Falls, Le Mars, Mount Pleasant, Storm Lake, Tipton and Waverly.

To learn more about investment resources for rural areas in Iowa, call (515) 284-4663 or visit www.rd.usda.gov/ia. If you’d like to subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit our GovDelivery subscriber page.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. Under the Biden-Harris Administration, 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.

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