Rural Health Clinic Location Modernization Act of 2025

This section modifies the language in the Social Security Act that specifies where a rural health clinic (RHC) cannot be located to qualify for Medicare reimbursement. Previously, RHCs could not be in an "urbanized area" as defined by the Census Bureau. This bill changes that to "an urban area (as defined by the Bureau of the Census) with a population of 50,000 or more." According to Census definitions, an "urbanized area" is an urban area with a population of 50,000 or more. Therefore, this amendment appears to be a technical clarification that maintains the existing population threshold for RHC exclusion, rather than changing which areas are eligible.

This subsection specifies that the changes made by the bill will take effect starting January 1, 2027. This provides a lead time for clinics and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to adapt to the new eligibility criteria, though the substantive impact on eligibility appears minimal.