Rural Residency Planning and Development Act of 2026

This bill establishes the Rural Residency Planning and Development Program , authorizing the Secretary to award grants to eligible entities. These grants are intended to help establish new rural residency programs or expand existing rural track programs by adding new training sites. The programs must focus on pathways such as general primary care, high-need specialty care (e.g., family medicine, psychiatry, general surgery), or maternal health and obstetrics, with a grant term of three years. Additionally, the bill creates a Rural Residency Planning and Development Technical Assistance Program , providing grants to entities that offer support to both current awardees and potential applicants of the main program. Eligible entities are broadly defined, including public, private, and Tribal organizations, with a "rural residency program" specifically training residents in rural areas for over half their residency to serve those communities. The bill authorizes an appropriation of $12.7 million annually for fiscal years 2027 through 2031 to fund these initiatives.