Concerns over fairness, access rise as states compete for slice of $50 billion rural health fund

Echo Kopplin wants South Dakota's leaders to know that money from a new $50 billion federal rural health fund should help residents with limited transportation options.

Kopplin, a physician assistant who works with seniors, low-income people, and mental health patients in the rural Black Hills, shared her thoughts at a meeting hosted by state officials.

South Dakota's leaders did a "good job of diving in" and asking questions to get "deeper at the root of the problem," she said.

Kopplin later told KFF Health News how one of her rural patients recently missed two appointments because of a broken-down car and no access to public transportation.

Nationwide, health care workers like Kopplin and thousands of others — from patient advocates to technology executives — flocked to town hall