Healthcare Workforce Investment Key to Rural Stability

January 5, 2026

Released by:  McKenzie Health

McKenzie Health Highlights Importance of Workforce Investment and Rural Provider Stability Following Federal Rural Health Funding Announcement

Watford City, ND—McKenzie Health welcomes the federal government’s establishment of the CMS Office of Rural Health Transformation and North Dakota’s inclusion in the $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program, calling the investment a significant opportunity to strengthen healthcare access across rural and frontier communities.

North Dakota is expected to receive approximately $199 million in federal funding in fiscal year 2026, with additional funding available through 2030. While the funds will flow to the state rather than directly to hospitals, Pete Edis, CEO, emphasized that how the state allocates these resources will be critical to sustaining healthcare access in northwest North Dakota.

“Rural healthcare is inseparable from the strength of rural communities,” said Edis. “Access to primary care, specialty services, and obstetrics is foundational to keeping families, employers, and workforce in our region.”

McKenzie Health serves as a critical access and emergency care hub for a geographically vast frontier region with limited alternatives for care. The health system provides essential services, including preventative care, primary medical care, specialty services including cancer, cardiology, ENT, orthopedics, general surgery, interventional pain, pulmonology, obstetrics, and emergency stabilization for patients who would otherwise face significant travel times.

Edis stressed that provider recruitment and retention must be a central focus of the state’s rural health strategy. “The ability to recruit and retain physicians and advanced practice providers—particularly in primary care, specialty care, and obstetrics—is the single most important factor in sustaining rural communities,” Edis said. “Temporary staffing can help in the short term, but long-term stability requires intentional investment in people.”

Edis also underscored the importance of workforce development, including training local residents for healthcare careers, supporting leadership development, and creating sustainable pipelines that reduce long-term reliance on temporary staffing.

“Workforce development is one of the highest-return investments the state can make,” Edis noted. “Building a local, stable healthcare workforce strengthens retention, improves outcomes, and protects access to care for rural North Dakotans.”

In addition, Edis highlighted the importance of investing in local capacity, minimizing transfers, investing in modern technology including robotics and telehealth, and facility modernization, noting that targeted investments can have an outsized impact in frontier regions.

Edis encourages state leaders to engage critical access and frontier hospitals in the planning and implementation of the Rural Health Transformation Program to ensure funds deliver measurable, on-the-ground benefits.

“This is a rare opportunity to make lasting improvements to rural healthcare,” Edis said. “We stand ready to partner with state leaders to ensure this investment strengthens healthcare access and community stability across northwest North Dakota.”

About McKenzie Health:  McKenzie Health is a critical access hospital/healthcare provider serving Watford City, McKenzie County, and the surrounding northwest North Dakota region. The organization provides essential medical (including obstetrics), emergency, and specialty services to a large frontier population, supporting the health and vitality of the area’s rural communities.

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MEDIA CONTACT
Lynn Welker-Fevold, MMHC, ACHE
Chief of Communications, Marketing, Strategy & Innovation
307-399-4145
lwelker@mchsnd.org