Healthcare professionals’ workforce shortages and recruitment in rural and remote areas continues to be a challenge for all regions in Russia. The aim of the article is to evaluate «Zemsky Doctor» Federal program as well as to identify areas for the improvement of the current Federal, regional and municipal socio-economic programs and initiatives in order to overcome healthcare professionals’ workforce shortages. Measures of social support and economic incentives for physicians and medical nurses really help to eliminate medical personnel deficit in rural and remote areas. The authors analyzed experiences of 20 regions with different security characteristics of the budgetary system. The study identified the more perspective trends of improving the regional, local programs and initiatives in healthcare professionals’ recruiting for rural and remote areas. They are target reception, co-financing professional education and post-university training programs, additional scholarships and benefits, one-time «roll-up» and assistance in solving housing problems, assistance for obtaining postgraduate professional education, additional cash payments on a regular basis for rural physicians and medical nurses, cash prizes for winners at regional, municipal and local healthcare professional competitions, etc. The authors conclude that the administration of regional and municipal programs and initiatives in order to overcome healthcare professionals’ workforce shortages in rural and remote reas should be a separate area of personnel management policy in public health administration.