Rural Health’s $50 Billion Fire Sale (and What Comes Next)

Rural Health Transformation is a $50 billion, five-year federal program, with first-year state awards averaging around $200 million each. Even if your company doesn’t think of itself as “rural,” that’s a lot of reasons to pay attention. But most of the conversation so far has been about chasing funding, not about what it really takes to win in this market.

In Part 1 of our two-part series on rural health, I’m joined by Karsten Russell-Wood, Chief Marketing and Experience Officer at Equum Medical. Karsten is helping build this market. He’s deeply involved with the RHT Alliance, he’s part of NRHA’s Rural Health Fellows program, and he has written on clinically integrated networks.

If you’re a healthtech marketer wondering whether RHT is worth your time, this episode answers the questions you need answered first. Why does Karsten call year one a “fire sale”? Who are you really selling to when a chief legal officer or a chief nursing officer may be leading the application? Why is a rural hospital CEO not buying innovation, and what are they buying instead? And with four years left in the program, why is the window to influence how the money gets spent closing faster than you’d think?

Karsten shares practical lessons from the NRHA exhibit hall, explains why trust and familiarity matter more than features in rural markets, and walks through what states are rewarding, including an 11-hospital specialty access collaborative in New York. He closes with advice every marketing leader should hear: spend less time building campaigns and more time building the market.

Next week in Part 2, Karsten returns with Angela Connor to get into execution.

Key Topics Covered

• "(00:00:00)" Introduction
• "(00:03:00)" What rural health looks like today
• "(00:07:00)" What most people get wrong
• "(00:09:00)" Why year one was a “fire sale” 
• "(00:11:00)" How companies have adapted their messaging
• "(00:13:00)" Who you’re really selling to
• "(00:15:00)" The buying group
• "(00:17:00)" The RHT Alliance and the value of offering a one-stop ecosystem
• "(00:18:00)" Who leads year one
• "(00:19:00)" How the value case differs from typical ROI selling
• "(00:22:00)" Inside the NRHA conference
• "(00:24:00)" Why trust, familiarity and right-sized solutions win
• "(00:28:00)" What states are rewarding
• "(00:30:00)" Is there still time?
• "(00:32:00)" Karsten’s advice for marketing leaders
• "(00:33:00)" Five key takeaways and a preview of Part 2 with Angela Connor

If you are interested in discussing this or any other topic, let's have a chat.  Reach out to me directly to schedule a no-obligation discussion. This isn't a sales call, but rather an opportunity to talk through your questions and challenges.

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