Issue brief
Improving Rural Healthcare
No Montanan should have to travel hours for basic care. Michael Black Wolf supports stronger rural hospitals, expanded telehealth, and practical solutions that make healthcare more affordable and accessible.
- Expand telehealth and broadband-supported care access
- Strengthen rural hospitals, clinics, and emergency services
- Protect affordable prescription drug access
- Improve care access for rural and Tribal communities
Healthcare should not depend on your zip code
For too many Montanans, getting care means long drives, long waits, and too many hard choices. Rural families, seniors, working parents, and Tribal communities often face barriers that people in larger areas do not. That is not acceptable.
Michael Black Wolf believes healthcare should be accessible, affordable, and dependable no matter where you live. People should be able to see a doctor, fill a prescription, and get basic care without feeling like the system is working against them.
Protecting rural hospitals and clinics
Rural hospitals and community clinics are lifelines. When they lose funding or staffing, entire regions feel the impact. Michael supports stronger federal investment in rural healthcare systems so communities can keep essential services close to home.
That includes supporting providers, protecting emergency care access, and making sure rural facilities are not forced to do more with less year after year.
Expanding telehealth where it can make a real difference
Telehealth is one of the most practical ways to improve care access across Montana, but it only works when communities have the connectivity to use it. Michael supports telehealth expansion alongside the broadband investment needed to make it reliable.
Telehealth can help reduce travel burdens, improve specialist access, support behavioral health services, and make follow-up care more manageable for families and elders.
Lowering the burden of prescription costs
Healthcare is not truly accessible if people cannot afford the medicine they need. Michael supports efforts to protect affordable prescription programs and bring more attention to the rising costs that hit working families and seniors the hardest.
No one should have to skip treatment, split pills, or choose between groceries and medication.
Serving rural and Tribal communities with respect
Healthcare access gaps do not affect every community equally. Tribal communities and remote rural areas often face deeper barriers tied to underinvestment, distance, and federal neglect. Michael supports practical, community-informed solutions that improve access while respecting the needs and leadership of local communities.
Montanans deserve a healthcare system that meets people where they are and treats access as a basic responsibility, not a privilege.