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Across the United States, communities are struggling to keep pace with the rapidly growing needs of older adults. As the senior population expands, families, providers, and community organizations face mounting pressure to deliver safe, connected, and dignified care—often with limited workforce capacity, fragmented systems, and rising costs.
This is especially true in rural communities where about 20% of residents are age 65 or older, compared with about 16% in urban areas. Older adults in rural areas have fewer nearby providers, specialists, long-term services, and supports. The mismatch between need and service capability aggravates poorer outcomes.
Without bold, scalable innovation, these challenges threaten quality of life, independence, and equitable access to care for millions of aging Americans.
CHALLENGE OPPORTUNITY
AscendRural’s Senior Care Innovation Accelerator invites solutions that strengthen the ecosystem supporting older adults and their caregivers. We are seeking innovations that align with one or more of the following Areas of Opportunity:
1. Strengthening Care Systems & Capacity
Solutions that help communities, providers, and caregivers deliver high-quality care more efficiently and sustainably.
2. Enabling Social Connection & Engagement
Innovations that reduce isolation and promote meaningful engagement, purpose, and community connection for older adults.
3. Daily Living, Safety, & Home Support
Solutions that help older adults maintain independence and safety in their homes and communities.
4. Flexibility for Emerging Opportunities
While these three opportunity areas reflect what we’ve heard most strongly from community partners so far, AscendRural remains open to innovative technologies outside these categories.
If a solution aligns with the criteria of our rural partners and demonstrates potential for meaningful impact in rural communities, we are happy to evaluate and explore it further through our Rural Readiness Accelerator.
Our goal is to ensure that promising innovations — even those beyond these themes — can still be considered for potential pilot opportunities in rural settings.
WHAT SELECTED INNOVATORS RECEIVE:
Selected solutions will receive:
*4 weeks of curriculum designed to improve your team’s rural readiness.
*Mentorship from nationally recognized senior care and aging innovation experts
*Market insights and community engagement support to strengthen product–market fit
*Opportunities to pilot solutions directly in partner communities
*An opportunity to showcase your innovation to community partners actively seeking pilot-ready solutions.
*If selected by community partners, teams can earn pilot contracts worth up to a maximum of $150,000 (no minimum guaranteed).
**Applicants should be “pilot ready,” with the ability to deploy their solution with a community partner on short notice.**
QUESTIONS?
For inquiries regarding the application process, please contact Steph.Peters@sourcewell-mn.gov
This is especially true in rural communities where about 20% of residents are age 65 or older, compared with about 16% in urban areas. Older adults in rural areas have fewer nearby providers, specialists, long-term services, and supports. The mismatch between need and service capability aggravates poorer outcomes.
Without bold, scalable innovation, these challenges threaten quality of life, independence, and equitable access to care for millions of aging Americans.
CHALLENGE OPPORTUNITY
AscendRural’s Senior Care Innovation Accelerator invites solutions that strengthen the ecosystem supporting older adults and their caregivers. We are seeking innovations that align with one or more of the following Areas of Opportunity:
1. Strengthening Care Systems & Capacity
Solutions that help communities, providers, and caregivers deliver high-quality care more efficiently and sustainably.
2. Enabling Social Connection & Engagement
Innovations that reduce isolation and promote meaningful engagement, purpose, and community connection for older adults.
3. Daily Living, Safety, & Home Support
Solutions that help older adults maintain independence and safety in their homes and communities.
4. Flexibility for Emerging Opportunities
While these three opportunity areas reflect what we’ve heard most strongly from community partners so far, AscendRural remains open to innovative technologies outside these categories.
If a solution aligns with the criteria of our rural partners and demonstrates potential for meaningful impact in rural communities, we are happy to evaluate and explore it further through our Rural Readiness Accelerator.
Our goal is to ensure that promising innovations — even those beyond these themes — can still be considered for potential pilot opportunities in rural settings.
WHAT SELECTED INNOVATORS RECEIVE:
Selected solutions will receive:
*4 weeks of curriculum designed to improve your team’s rural readiness.
*Mentorship from nationally recognized senior care and aging innovation experts
*Market insights and community engagement support to strengthen product–market fit
*Opportunities to pilot solutions directly in partner communities
*An opportunity to showcase your innovation to community partners actively seeking pilot-ready solutions.
*If selected by community partners, teams can earn pilot contracts worth up to a maximum of $150,000 (no minimum guaranteed).
**Applicants should be “pilot ready,” with the ability to deploy their solution with a community partner on short notice.**
QUESTIONS?
For inquiries regarding the application process, please contact Steph.Peters@sourcewell-mn.gov