LEXINGTON, Ky. — Gov. Andy Beshear announced that Kentucky has been included in UnitedHealthcare's nationwide expansion of rural health care initiatives designed to strengthen access and lower costs for healthcare providers and families in rural communities.

UnitedHealthcare announced a significant national expansion that will accelerate payments and reduce administrative burdens on rural hospitals and healthcare providers across the country. The initiative includes speeding payments by up to 50% for approximately 1,500 rural hospitals and exempting rural providers from most medical prior authorization requirements across all lines of business, along with launching new hub-and-spoke partnerships designed to deliver essential services directly to patients in their communities.

Kentucky is among five additional states — along with Alabama, Arkansas, Virginia and West Virginia — now included in the Rural Payment Acceleration Pilot, which began in January 2026. Under the program, Medicare Advantage payments to hospitals will be accelerated from fewer than 30 days to fewer than 15 days on average, helping improve cash flow and financial sustainability at the facilities.

By fall 2026, UnitedHealthcare intends to exempt rural providers from most medical prior authorization requirements, an effort designed to alleviate cost and staffing strains that disproportionately affect rural providers while giving them greater flexibility to focus on patient care rather than administrative processes. The company expects to expand the program nationwide to 1,500 rural hospitals and their associated rural practitioners.

The announcement comes as Kentucky has been prioritizing rural healthcare support. The state recently secured $212.9 million in federal Rural Health Transformation funding to support rural communities through initiatives including chronic care innovation, maternal care expansion, behavioral health services and enhanced emergency care. UnitedHealthcare's initiative will also focus on hub-and-spoke care models connecting regional clinical expertise with community-based access points, with initial areas of focus on maternity care, diabetes and post-surgical care.