rural hospitals

When the cancer clinic at Mercy Hospital Fort Scott closed in January, Karen Endicott-Coyan and other cancer patients had to continue their treatments out of town.

Health & Safety

Have Cancer, Must Travel: Patients Left In Lurch After Town's Hospital Closes

10:29am June 29, 2019

by Sarah Jane Tribble

As the rural town of Fort Scott, Kan., grapples with the closure of its hospital, cancer patients bear a heavy burden. They now have to go elsewhere for treatments they used to get locally.

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Leitha Dollarhyde, a retired caregiver who lives in a rural town near Whitesburg, Ky., says she could not afford an unexpected $1,000 expense.

Poll: Many Rural Americans Struggle With Financial Insecurity, Access To Health Care

9:09am May 21, 2019

A new poll from NPR, Harvard and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation gives a glimpse into rural life in America today, finding that many people living in rural communities live on the edge financially.

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Visitors to Mercy's Fort Scott hospital would pass a tall white cross as they drove down a winding driveway before arriving at the front door. Sisters of Mercy nuns founded the hospital in 1886, and the newest building, constructed in 2002, honors that Ro

No Mercy: How A Kansas Town Is Grappling With Its Hospital's Closure

11:20am May 14, 2019

by Sarah Jane Tribble

People in Fort Scott, Kan., depended on their local hospital for more than a century. In December, the hospital closed. Fort Scott residents now are trying to cope with life without it.

Before it closed March 1, the 25-bed Columbia River Hospital, in Celina, Tenn., served the town of 1,500 residents. The closest hospital now is 18 miles from Celina — a 30-minute or more drive on mountain roads.

Economic Ripples: Hospital Closure Hurts A Town's Ability To Attract Retirees

8:05am April 07, 2019

by Blake Farmer

Celina, Tenn., has long lured retirees, with its scenic hills and affordability. These newcomers help fuel the local economy. But a recent hospital closure makes the town a harder sell.

The uncompensated care costs among Colorado hospitals dropped by more than 60 percent after the state expanded Medicaid coverage — a savings of more than $400 million statewide. But a new report asks why the hospitals didn't pass some of those savings o

Hospital Finances Improve After Medicaid Expansion, But At Whose Expense?

11:00am March 26, 2019

by Phil Galewitz

Now that Colorado has expanded Medicaid coverage to include more low-income residents, hospitals are better off financially. But that hasn't stopped them from shifting costs to other insured patients.

Charlotte Potts, who has a history of heart problems, lives within sight of Livingston Regional Hospital. After a recent stint there, she was discharged into the care of a home health agency, and now gets treatment in her apartment for some ailments.

How Helping Patients Get Good Care At Home Helps Rural Hospitals Survive

7:00am December 23, 2018

by Blake Farmer

Hospitals are now financially rewarded by insurers for safety and efficacy — which often results in patients spending less time as inpatients.

Proponents of hospital mergers say the change can help struggling nonprofit hospitals "thrive," with an infusion of cash to invest in updated technology and top clinical staff. But research shows the price of care, especially for low-income patients, usua

Can A Community Hospital Stick To Its Mission When It Goes For-Profit?

10:38am July 19, 2018

by Steven Findlay

After 130 years as a nonprofit hospital with deep roots in North Carolina, Mission Health is seeking to be bought by HCA Healthcare, the nation's largest for-profit hospital chain.

Struggling to stay afloat, a rural hospital in Missouri took a chance on new managers.

Vulnerable Rural Hospitals Face Tough Decisions On Questionable Billing Schemes

7:48pm July 03, 2018

Management consultants have been buying up struggling rural hospitals, claiming they can turn their finances around. But are those strategies in the hospitals' best interest?

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Carolina Curious: Why Are So Many Rural Hospitals Closing And What Happens After They Do?

5:00am November 29, 2017

by Bethany Chafin