Healthcare providers need access to current information on government programs such as Medicaid and Medicare.  Managed care may play a lesser role in reimbursement for hospital services, but can also be important.  The links found in the reimbursement section connect to background information on government plans as well as regularly updated websites. 

Rural health care providers can apply for many different grants from both government and private sources.  Many of these grants can be used for projects that improve access to health care.  Grants can also be used to establish special projects that will eventually provide additional revenue sources for hospitals.

Reimbursement:  General Information

• Health Maintenance Organizations and Preferred Provider Organizations
  The Rural Information Center Health Service (under the auspices of the Office of Rural Health Policy) provides annotated bibliographies on several topics.
  http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/richspub/mancare.htm 
  
  
             http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/richspub/mancare.htm#
             [Managed Care]
  
  
             http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/richspub/mancare.htm#Medicaid  
             [Medicaid]
  
  
             http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/richspub/mancare.htm#Medicare 
             [Medicare]

• National Health Law Program
  This page addresses many aspects of health care access for low-income families. The website provides updates, press releases, general information, and related links for each topic.
  http://www.healthlaw.org/ 
  
  
             http://www.healthlaw.org/managedcare.shtml 
             [Managed Care]
  
  
             http://www.healthlaw.org/medicaid.shtml 
             [Medicaid]
  
  
            http://www.healthlaw.org/medicare.shtml 
            [Medicare]
  
  

• Promoting Health in Rural Areas Act of 1999
  This document is located on the homepage of Senator Thomas of Wyoming. The document summarizes provisions of the Rural Areas Act of 1999 that directly impact government reimbursement of rural health care providers.
  http://www.senate.gov/~thomas/html/summary.html

• Rural Implications of the Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP Balanced Budget Refinement Act of 1999: A Rural Analysis of the Health Policy Provisions
  This document summarizes reimbursement changes resulting from the BBRA 1999. The table of contents is helpful, but the user must scroll through the length of the document to reach each subsection.
  http://www.rupri.org/pubs/archive/reports/P99-11/ 

Medicare

• Medicare Payment Systems
  This site is a listing of payment programs and fee schedules. Each service listed has a link to its own page that contains more detailed information and more links.
  http://www.hcfa.gov/medicare/payment.htm 
  
  
  
  

Medicaid

•   Provider Reimbursement Manual
  In order to view these documents they must be individually downloaded from the website as Word Perfect files. The government will create an HTML version. The first link is to the table of publications available.
  http://www.hcfa.gov/pubforms/progman.htm 
  
                http://www.hcfa.gov/pubforms/provreim/prvretoc.htm 
                [Part I]
  
  
               http://www.hcfa.gov/pubforms/pub152/pub_15_2.htm 
               [Part II]

• Texas Medicaid Program and Fraud and Abuse Prevention
  The Texas Health and Human Services Commission provides this site with information on the Medicaid program in Texas.
  http://www.hhsc.state.tx.us/Medicaid/index.html 

Grants

Guidelines for Writing Grants

• Elements of a Grant Proposal
  The Paladin Group, a consulting firm specializing in grant mentoring, has produced this site. The site provides bulleted lists of items to include in each section of a grant proposal as well as suggested lengths for each section.
  http://www.silcom.com/~paladin/promaster.html 

• Faculty & Research: Writing a Grant Proposal: Writing Tips and Application Forms
  Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center provides a list of several useful links for grant application.
  http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/research/writing.htm 

• Proposal Writer's Guide
  This site provides step-by-step instructions on composing a grant proposal. Also included are tips on contacting private foundations and top reasons why proposals are rejected.
  http://www.research.umich.edu/research/
  proposals/proposal_dev/PWG/pwgcontents.html 
  
  
  
• A Proposal Writing Short Course
  This guideline for proposal writing comes from the Foundation Center. There are estimations for length of each section and a list of print resources to consult.
  http://fdncenter.org/onlib/shortcourse/prop1.html 
  

Sources 

General Information

• The Foundation Center:  A Guide to Funding Resources
  This site addresses many aspects of funding. It provides a good background, explaining the terminology of grant seeking.
  http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/ricpubs/funding/fundguide.html 
  
  
  
• Rural Health Services Funding: A Resource Guide
  This page gives an overview of grants for rural health projects. It is a narrative describing different funding sources and terminology. The appendices contain links to individual grant providers, public and private.
  http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/richspub/ric41.htm 

Government

• Funding Resources
  The Rural Information Center Health Service produces this page. The page contains several links to funding resources. There are subsections for telemedicine grants and publications.
  http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/richs/funding.htm 
  
  
             http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/richs/grants.htm 
             [Federal Grant Opportunities Relevant to Rural Health]
  
  
  
• Rural Health Network Development Grant Program
  The Federal Office of Rural Health Policy sponsors this site which describes the grants available in this area.
  http://www.nal.usda.gov/orhp/network.htm 
  
  
  
• Rural Health Outreach Grant Program
  This site, from the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy, describes the requirements and application process for grants in this area.
  http://www.nal.usda.gov/orhp/outreach.htm 
  

Private

• This site provides links to homepages of many organizations, but it is arranged alphabetically, not by topic. Therefore, it would be of use when trying to find a particular organization, but not helpful if you are looking for general health oriented sponsors.
  http://www.fdncenter.org/ 
  
  
• J. C. Downing Foundation
  This foundation has a fairly narrow focus. Grants have been sponsored for various educational and technological projects.
  http://www.jcdowning.org/ 
  
              http://www.jcdowning.org/funding/grantmaking.htm 
              [Grantmaking Guidelines]
  
  
  
• Ittleson Foundation
  This foundation supports grants focusing on AIDS and mental health.
  http://www.ittlesonfoundation.org/ 
  
              http://www.ittlesonfoundation.org/guides.html 
              [How to Apply]
  

• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
  This foundation supports grants for many aspects of health care. Projects in access, chronic disease care, and substance abuse are part of the organization’s mission statement.
  http://www.rwjf.org/main.html 
  
             http://www.rwjf.org/grant/jgrant.htm 
             [Applying for a Grant]
  

• W. K. Kellogg Foundation
  Kellogg foundation provides grant for health care projects. Grantee must be able to show financial ability to continue services after end of grant.
  http://www.wkkf.org/ 
  
             http://www.wkkf.org/ProgrammingInterests/Health/health_overview.htm 
             [Health Programming in the United States]

• Medtronic Foundation
  Medtronic foundation provides grants for projects that improve access to health care. They have funded support groups and cultural outreach efforts. Very promising.
  http://www.medtronic.com/foundation/index.html 
  
             http://www.medtronic.com/foundation/guide.html 
             [Guidelines and Application Procedures}
  

• Rockefeller Brothers Fund
  Provides grants for biomedical research and health care access improvement. 
  http://www.culpeper.org/ 
  
            http://www.culpeper.org/howapply.html 
            [How to Apply]