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February 6, 2025

OMB memo halts HHS funding to 1,400 rural health clinics

NPR
Shelby Reese
PBS NewsHour
NBC News
The Conversation
+1

Thousands without healthcare as bureaucracy kills programs

Community health centers serve more than 32 million Americans—covering one in five rural residents and one in three people living in poverty (NBC News).

On 2025-02-06, the Office of Management and Budget issued a two-page memo directing all federal agencies to pause obligations and disbursements of all federal financial assistance (NBC News).

New York Governor Kathy Hochul reported that her state would forfeit roughly $300 million in federal funding earmarked for rural county health departments due to the freeze (NPR).

📋Public Policy✊Civil Rights

Test Your Knowledge

10
Q1

Rural Americans are more likely than urban Americans to rely on community health centers.

Q2

When patients miss appointments due to clinic closures, what happens to healthcare costs?

Q3

How many rural hospitals have closed since 2010?

Q4

Health centers affected by the freeze had operating reserves lasting 6-8 months.

Q5

What federal agency issued the memo freezing health clinic funding?

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People, bills, and sources

Kathy Hochul

New York Governor

What you can do

1

Students eligible for Pell Grants, federal student loans or Federal Work-Study can continue to apply and check disbursement status at studentaid.gov, as these programs were exempted from the freeze (Inside Higher Ed).

2

Community health centers funded through the federal Addiction and Mental Health grant—scheduled to run through Sep. 2025—should monitor award and reimbursement requests via Grants.gov before the end of Sep. 2025 (NPR; grants.gov).

3

Rural residents seeking primary or emergency care can locate the nearest federally qualified health centers using the HRSA Rural Health Clinic Locator at https://www.hrsa.gov/rural-health.