KDSN RADIO News
MRHC Awarded $1.915 Million Through Healthy Hometown Funding
Manning Regional Healthcare Center (MRHC) has been selected to receive four grants totaling more than $1.915 million through the Iowa Healthy Hometowns Project. Funding will support hiring two new positions, acquiring an MRI machine, and expanding treatment services at the MRHC Recovery Center as it has been named a Behavioral Health Center of Excellence. This investment builds on the $500,000 the Recovery Center received through Iowa opioid settlement funding, announced in January.
“These grants are a significant investment in rural healthcare and in the patients who rely on us every day,” said Chief Nursing Officer Michelle Andersen, RN, BSN. “Healthy Hometowns funding helps MRHC strengthen services, support our workforce, and continue to provide high-quality care close to home.”
Best & Brightest Workforce – Mental Health RN
MRHC received two Best & Brightest Workforce awards, part of the 107 statewide workforce grants. MRHC will recruit one full-time Mental Health Registered Nurse (RN) dedicated to supporting the Recovery Center’s behavioral health and substance use disorder (SUD) services. By strengthening nursing capacity, this additional staff member will enhance patient safety, reduce staff burnout, and expand access to timely, high-quality recovery care for rural Iowans.
Best & Brightest Workforce – ARNP for the Emergency Department
In addition to the Mental Health RN, MRHC will recruit one Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner (ARNP) for the Emergency Department. This position will enhance timely evaluations, strengthen clinical decision-making during high-acuity cases, reduce transfers to distant facilities, and help create a more sustainable workforce structure while ensuring patients continue to receive expert emergency care locally.
Best & Brightest Medical Equipment – MRI
MRHC will purchase and install a permanent, in-house MRI system, replacing reliance on a mobile MRI unit that is currently on site once per week. A permanent MRI will significantly expand local diagnostic capacity, improve continuity of care, and ensure rural patients can receive advanced imaging with less travel and greater scheduling availability. MRHC was one of 36 statewide recipients of the Best & Brightest Medical Equipment award.
Center of Excellence – Behavioral Health and Substance Use Disorders
The MRHC Recovery Center was one of ten statewide awardees to receive the Center of Excellence designation and funding. As a Critical Access Hospital and home to one of Iowa’s only hospital-based residential SUD treatment programs, MRHC is uniquely positioned to strengthen regional access, coordination, and outcomes for substance use care. The Center of Excellence funding will allow the MRHC Recovery Center to expand access to evidence-based SUD treatment, enhance prevention and community engagement, and strengthen staffing and service capacity.
“This investment is a game-changer for recovery care,” said Taya Vonnahme, ARNP, Recovery Center Director. “We can expand evidence-based treatment and ensure we have the staff needed to meet the growing behavioral health needs in our area.”
More details of the expanded services will be announced in the coming months.
Governor Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services initially announced more than $78.6 million in Healthy Hometowns funding to strengthen rural health care through new medical equipment and workforce recruitment incentives. If fully awarded, the State of Iowa could receive $200 million per project year period (a total of $1 billion over the 5-year grant). Supported by CMS through Iowa’s Rural Health Transformation Program, the initiative makes Iowa the first state in the nation to award funds under the federal program, with additional grant opportunities expected later this year.
Learn more at Healthy Hometowns – Iowa’s Rural Health Transformation Plan.
