{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://dondavis.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-davis-and-nc-lawmakers-support-rural-healthcare", "Congressman Davis and NC Lawmakers Support Rural Healthcare", "2025-12-18", "2025", "2025-12", "Democrat", "House", "NC", "Donald G. Davis", "D000230", "dondavis.house.gov", "dondavis", "https://dondavis.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 Congressman Don Davis (NC-01) led members of the North Carolina congressional delegation in a letter to Dr. Mehmet Oz, Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), expressing strong support for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services\u2019 Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) application.\n\n\u201cApproving North Carolina\u2019s application for the RHTP is a critical step in improving health outcomes for the nearly three million rural North Carolinians who call our state home,\u201d said Congressman Don Davis.\n\nTwelve rural hospitals in North Carolina have closed, including seven in eastern North Carolina, since 2006. An RHTP investment will improve health outcomes and access for nearly three million rural North Carolinians, advancing innovative care models, transforming the rural care experience, and creating a sustainable rural delivery system.\n\n\u201cWhile our state\u2019s application requested a funding amount equal to 2 percent of total RHTP dollars available, North Carolina accounts for 7.6 percent of the rural population nationwide, so we are requesting that CMS allocate additional dollars so that the total funding amount is proportional to the disproportionately large rural population in our state,\u201d the lawmakers wrote in their letter to Administrator Oz.\n\n\u201cAn RHTP investment will improve health outcomes and access for nearly three million rural North Carolinians, advancing innovative care models, transforming the rural care experience, and creating a sustainable rural delivery system. By FY2031, NCRHTP aims to increase rural provider-to-population ratios, reduce preventable hospital readmissions and emergency visits, lower chronic disease risk factors, and expand access to integrated behavioral, mental health, and substance use services. Locally governed, community-tailored networks will connect medical, behavioral, and social services, making it easier for rural residents to access comprehensive care in one place,\u201d the lawmakers continued.\n\nCongressman Davis was joined by North Carolina Senators Thom Tillis, Ted Budd, and Representatives Deborah Ross (NC-02), Greg Murphy (NC-03), Valerie Foushee (NC-04), Addison McDowell (NC-06), David Rouzer (NC-07), Richard Hudson (NC-09), Alma Adams (NC-12), and Tim Moore (NC-14).", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:09:11Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://dondavis.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-davis-and-nc-lawmakers-support-rural-healthcare"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8664000779390335, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}