American Heart Association Extends Rural Health Care Outcomes Accelerator Through 2028

The American Heart Association has announced a three-year extension of its Rural Health Care Outcomes Accelerator program through June 2028, continuing its commitment to address significant health disparities in rural communities. Research shows rural Americans face a 30% higher risk of stroke, are 40% more likely to develop heart disease, and live an average of three years fewer than their urban counterparts, according to data from American Heart Association research.

The extension will provide limited three-year no-cost enrollment opportunities for new rural organizations participating in the Get With The Guidelines programs for coronary artery disease, heart failure, and stroke. Critical Access Hospitals will receive complimentary access to all five Get With The Guidelines programs, including those for atrial fibrillation and resuscitation. All rural program participants will gain access to the peer-to-peer American Heart Association Rural Community Network, dedicated quality program consultants, quarterly learning collaboratives, and educational resources specifically tailored for rural hospital clinicians.

Since its 2022 launch, the Accelerator has significantly expanded rural hospital participation, with 430 hospitals enrolling at no cost and more than 1,000 rural hospitals now engaged in over 1,500 Get With The Guidelines programs nationwide. In 2025 alone, more than 650 rural hospitals earned recognition awards through the program, representing a nearly 30% increase over the previous year.

Dr. Eduardo Sanchez, chief medical officer for prevention at the American Heart Association, emphasized that "rural hospitals are vital points of access to health care for over 60 million people living in rural communities across the country. This extension underscores the American Heart Association's continued commitment to enhancing cardiovascular and stroke care for rural clinicians with collaboration opportunities, resources, education and data-driven strategies that improve outcomes and save lives."

Program highlights include dedicated quality program consultants to support data completeness and validation, continued learning collaboratives tailored for rural clinicians, enhancements to the Rural Get With The Guidelines registry, and the launch of the Rural Accelerator Quality Improvement Challenge Scholarship offering competitive awards for hospitals sharing model practices. The initiative builds on previous research documented in publications such as Circulation's Call to Action on Rural Health and addresses health inequity challenges highlighted in programs like the Public Health AmeriCorps initiative.