North Carolina Selects Five Hub Leads to Strengthen Rural Healthcare

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has selected five organizations as leads for the Rural Organizations Orchestrating Transformation for Sustainability (ROOTS) Hub effort that is part of he state’s Rural Health Transformation Program. The organizations will work as regional networks connecting medical, behavioral health, and social supports as North Carolina increases access to care for rural communities across all 100 counties.

The NC ROOTS Hub Lead awardees include: 
• Impact Health – Region 1
• Trillium Health Resources – Region 2 and 5
• Vaya Health – Region 3
• University of North Carolina Hospitals – Region 4
• Access East Inc. – Region 6

North Carolina has the second-largest rural population in the country. Following a regional needs assessment, the NC ROOTS Hub Leads will establish local networks of partner organizations focused on strengthening the rural healthcare infrastructure. Over the next five years, tailored to their regions’ needs, NC ROOTS Hubs will support rural communities by: 
• Improving behavioral health and substance use services
• Enhancing care coordination across regions
• Leveraging digital tools to improve outcomes
• Expanding access to primary care
• Strengthening healthcare through workforce development

The organizations were selected through a competitive process to ensure they demonstrated the knowledge, experience, infrastructure, and capacity to serve as both the programmatic and fiduciary leads for their regions. These organizations will work with NCDHHS to finalize contracts by June 1, 2026.

As a story in North Carolina Health News points out, two of the five awardees — Impact Health and Access East — participated in the Healthy Opportunities Pilot (HOP) launched in 2022 across three largely rural regions of the state. HOP provided Medicaid beneficiaries with services tied to the social determinants of health — things like boxes of fresh food, removal of mold from houses and rides to doctors appointments. As the article points out, “while studies showed the program saved the state about $1,000 a year on participants’ healthcare costs and had a positive effect on local economies, state lawmakers declined to designate the money needed to keep it going.”

"Ensuring communities, providers, and stakeholders continue to be at the forefront of our efforts to transform the health and well-being of the more than 3.5 million rural residents in North Carolina is crucial," said NC Health and Human Services Secretary Dev Sangvai, in a statement. "By investing in strong regional partnerships, we are creating a healthier, more connected rural health system that serves North Carolinians when and where they need it."

"Where you live should not determine your access to high-quality care," said NCDHHS Deputy Secretary for Health Debra Farrington, in a statement. "Our selected NC ROOTS Hub Leads will bring together voices from across the state to deliver coordinated, impactful services that foster better outcomes and address the unique challenges our rural communities face.”