Bringing Methadone Treatment to Rural America
ZING Satellite™ is aligned with the goals of the Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program. RHT explicitly allows funds to be used to support access to opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment services.
Transformative
The Opportunity
A Transformative New Rural Health Fund
In 2025, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) launched the Rural Health Transformation (RHT) Program, a historic $50 billion federal investment over five years designed to strengthen rural healthcare delivery nationwide.
Through RHT, states can fund innovative models that expand access points for care, support behavioral health and substance use disorder (SUD) treatment, build workforce capacity, and deploy new technologies, all with the goal of creating sustainable, long-term rural health infrastructure.
Our Why
Why Methadone Matters and Why Rural Areas Are Underserved
Effectiveness
Methadone is widely recognized as one of the most effective treatments for opioid use disorder, particularly fentanyl addiction.
Access
Yet rural communities lack access to methadone, because traditional Opioid Treatment Programs (OTPs) require costly brick-and-mortar facilities or mobile units, and there are chronic healthcare workforce shortages in many rural areas.
Retention
As a result, too many people in rural America go without life-saving methadone treatment or must travel long distances, creating barriers to retention and recovery.
Enter ZING Satellite™: A Smart, Sustainable Solution
ZING Satellite™ was designed precisely to address the structural barriers that prevent rural methadone access.
It offers a lower-cost, flexible, and scalable way for OTPs to open new access points without the upfront capital demands or onsite staffing requirements of building clinics or deploying traditional mobile methadone vans.
ZING Satellite™ + RHT
How ZING Satellite™ Aligns with the Goals of the RHT Program
Create OTP access points
ZING Satellite™ can be deployed in rural health centers, community health clinics, federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), or other community-based sites. The operating OTP registers the site as a satellite medication unit. OTP staff remotely serve patients at the site using the robotic automation in real-time.
Sustainable Infrastructure, Not Just Grant-funded Clinics:
Once installed, ZING Satellite™ has low operational overhead that can be sustained with lower patient census. OTPs can manage these sites as part of their ongoing operations — creating durable, long-term access for patients beyond the grant window.
Efficient Use of Workforce & Technology
Because ZING® automates methadone dose assembly, it reduces the burden on limited rural clinical staff, enabling the new service line to be added with fewer onsite resources than traditional models — aligning with RHT’s workforce development and technology innovation goals.
Cost-Effective & Scalable
ZING Satellite™ offers a lower-cost alternative to building traditional OTP clinics or operating mobile vans, making it easier for OTP providers to sustain and expand methadone access in lower-volume areas.
Why
A Strategic Investment in Rural Health
By supporting ZING Satellite™ adoption, states will:
Enhance
Access
Launch methadone access in underserved communities where traditional OTPs are not financially or operationally feasible.
Build
Infrastructure
Leverage federal investment to build long-term infrastructure for OUD treatment, not just time-limited services.
Expand
Scope
Expand the scope of rural behavioral health services, enabling comprehensive care for opioid use disorder.
Improve
Outcomes
Improve retention, equity, and outcomes by making methadone accessible close to home for people who might otherwise be forced to travel many hours.
See How It Works
Watch the demo video
Who
Who Should Consider This Approach?
State Health Departments
State health departments developing their Rural Health Transformation Program, methadone access via ZING Satellite fits squarely within the program’s priorities (behavioral health, SUD treatment, innovative care models, technology-enabled delivery).
OTPs & Rural Clinics
OTPs, Rural clinics, FQHCs, community health centers, and behavioral health providers looking to add OUD medication services without the capital burden of building a full OTP.
Policymakers & Local Health Coalitions
Policymakers, local health coalitions, and rural hospital networks interested in sustainable models for SUD treatment and preventing overdose deaths.
Contact Us
Get in touch with our team for further assistance.
Contact Us