September 21, 2026: Measles Surge, Preparing for Medicaid Work Requirements & Healthy Aging Programs in Rural Communities

Rural Health News is a weekly segment of Rural Health Today, a podcast by Hillsdale Hospital.

News sources for this episode:

KFF Health News, “Tracking Implementation of the 2025 Reconciliation Law: Medicaid Work Requirements, August 3, 2026, https://www.kff.org/medicaid/medicaid-work-requirements-tracker-overview/.

Our World Data, “Measles cases in the United States1919 to 2026,” September 18, 2026, https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/number-of-measles-cases?time=1919..2026.

Kristin Wright, “Pennsylvania says an unvaccinated woman has died from measles-related complications,” September 13, 2026, https://www.npr.org/2026/09/13/nx-s1-5968093/pennsylvania-says-an-unvaccinated-woman-has-died-from-measles-related-complications, National Public Radio.

Aria Bendix & Erika Edwards, “Pennsylvania teen dies from measles complications, health officials report,” September 15, 2026, https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/pennsylvania-teen-dies-measles-complications-coroner-cdc-2026-rcna597980, NBC News.

Yasmeen Abutaleb & Dan Levine, “Pennsylvania asks for CDC measles help amid Kennedy dispute,” September 17, 2026, https://www.reuters.com/world/pennsylvania-asks-cdc-help-measles-outbreak-demands-agency-recognize-measles-2026-09-17/, Reuters.

Rebecca Yeboah, “Building Rural Age-Friendly Communities by Expanding CHW Training,” September 1, 2026, https://www.ruralhealth.us/blogs/2026/09-september/building-rural-age-friendly-communities-by-expanding-chw-training, National Rural Health Association.

Rural Health Today is a production of Hillsdale Hospital in Hillsdale, Michigan and a member of the Health Podcast Network. Our host is JJ Hodshire, our producer is Kyrsten Newlon, and our audio engineer is Kenji Ulmer. Special thanks to our special guests for sharing their expertise on the show, and also to the Hillsdale Hospital marketing team. If you want to submit a question for us to answer on the podcast or learn more about Rural Health Today, visit ruralhealthtoday.com.