More than a fifth of rural hospitals on the brink of closure - Entrepreneur Generations

Five percent of rural hospitals in the U.S. have shut down since 2010, and more than a fifth of currently open rural hospitals are at high risk of doing the same unless their fortunes improve. "The situation would significantly worsen in the case of an economic downturn, something that’s looming given that the country is in its longest period of economic expansion ever," according to a new report by business analysts Navigant Consulting, Inc. In some states like Alabama, Alaska and Mississippi, almost half of rural hospitals are at risk of closure.

The report analyzed data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on 2,045 rural hospitals and found that 21 percent — about 430 in 43 states — are on the edge of bankruptcy. The closure of a rural hospital can devastate the local economy, since rural hospitals are often the biggest employers nearby. "One study found that when a community loses its hospital, per capita income falls by 4 percent and the unemployment rate rises by 1.6 percent," reports Navigant Managing Director Dave Mosley.

The report says that better telehealth reimbursement could help rural hospitals stay open by enabling partnerships with larger regional hospitals, and recommends that rural hospitals lobby for legislative changes to make it happen.

from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/2NfGnlL More than a fifth of rural hospitals on the brink of closure - Entrepreneur Generations

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