Rural Health
News by Topic: Closures of healthcare facilities and services
Jan 22, 2025 - Highlights recent research studies on obstetric service access in rural communities nationally and in Minnesota. Discusses distance to care, reasons for closures, and projected shortages of obstetric and gynecology physicians.
Source: MinnPost
Jan 9, 2025 - Details the findings of a recent survey on workforce shortages at Minnesota long-term care facilities. Discusses the relationship between staffing shortages and long-term care facility closures, which have been concentrated in rural Minnesota. Highlights the growing number of facilities that are recruiting workers from other countries, and efforts to streamline the recruitment and immigration processes.
Source: MinnPost
Jan 6, 2025 - Describes challenges with access to hospice services for rural families based on recent research. Discusses recent hospice closures, caregiver burnout, quality of care, and communication preferences.
Source: Hospice News
Dec 30, 2024 - Describes the findings of new research on hospital obstetric units published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Notes that, between 2010 and 2022, a greater proportion of rural hospitals lacked obstetric services compared to urban hospitals. Discusses the wide-ranging health implications for rural mothers and babies, and provides an overview of proposed federal legislation to address the issue.
Source: The Daily Yonder
Dec 26, 2024 - Highlights the discontinuation of labor and delivery services in some rural Wyoming communities due to low demand. Discusses efforts to increase reimbursement rates for Medicaid births to help stabilize rural labor and delivery services. Notes the potential impacts of lower birth rates on the quality of care.
Source: Public News Service
Dec 19, 2024 - Reports on trends in maternal health and mortality in Arizona and drivers of poor outcomes such as limited mental health training for providers, mental health workforce shortages, and stigma. Discusses rural-specific challenges in accessing care like transportation, labor and delivery service access, broadband, and low provider reimbursement rates for care.
Source: Tuscon Sentinel
Dec 16, 2024 - Highlights a hospital in rural South Carolina using telehealth and new technology to offer specialized care to local residents after 2 nearby hospitals closed.
Source: SCETV
Dec 9, 2024 - Discusses anticipated challenges with receiving prescription medication for rural Missouri residents relying on the U.S. Postal Service due to planned changes to distribution routes and less frequent service. Notes there have been increases in mail-order prescriptions alongside a national trend in rural pharmacy closures.
Source: Missouri Independent
Dec 4, 2024 - Summarizes recent research finding that between 2010 and 2022 access to obstetric care has declined in both rural and urban hospitals, though closures for rural areas are felt more acutely. Notes the impact closures have on already high maternal mortality rates.
Source: University of Minnesota News and Events