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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Hospitals

The Pennsylvania Rural Health Model (PARHM): Fourth Annual Evaluation Report
Evaluates the fourth performance year of the Pennsylvania Rural Health Model (PARHM), an initiative designed to test if global budgets can help rural hospitals improve their financial viability, provide flexibility to meet locally defined community health needs, and reduce overall healthcare spending. Provides an overview of the model and describes the implementation experience of participating hospitals and payers. Presents a descriptive quantitative assessment of financial performance, spending and utilization, access to care, and quality of care outcomes from 2016, the model's baseline, through 2022. Includes three case studies discussing three themes: experiences with global budget reconciliation, behavioral health transformation, and interactions and alignment between PARHM and other value-based care programs.
Additional links: Appendix, Findings at a Glance
Date: 12/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Hospital Margins Rebounded in 2023, But Rural Hospitals and Those With High Medicaid Shares Were Struggling More Than Others
Examines hospital margins for non-federal general short-term hospitals in the U.S. from 2018 through 2023, with a focus on operating margins. Analyzes RAND Hospital Data to explore the extent to which hospitals profited or lost money on patient care and other operating activities. Discusses differences in operating margins by hospital characteristics, including hospital ownership type, commercial share, size, rural or urban location, and Medicare rural payment designation.
Date: 12/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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Critical Access Hospital Financial Sustainability Guide
Provides guidance and assistance to state Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility (Flex) Program personnel, leaders of Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), and others helping CAHs manage long-term financial stability. Presents potential interventions CAHs may use to address ongoing and systemic financial challenges in rural healthcare.
Date: 12/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: EideBailly, National Rural Health Resource Center
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Health Equity at the Center of Rural Care
Podcast episode featuring a discussion with Terry Scoggin, CEO of Titus Regional Medical Center, on how the organization has designed a system of care to ensure equitable access to care for every patient. Highlights how the American Hospital Association's Health Equity Roadmap supported the equity initiative and influenced culture change within the organization.
Date: 12/2024
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Strategies for Critical Access Hospitals to Address Outmigration
Provides an overview of factors that may contribute to a rural healthcare facility experiencing bypass or market share loss. Offers strategies to help rural hospitals, Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), and Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) increase Primary Service Area (PSA) market share and address outmigration.
Date: 12/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Impact! Communications, Inc., National Rural Health Resource Center
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Effects of Rural Hospital Closures on Nurse Staffing Levels and Health Care Utilization at Nearby Hospitals
Analyzes healthcare utilization and nurse staffing levels when nearby rural hospitals close. Utilizes 2014-2019 American Hospital Association Survey data to examine vocational nurse/licensed practical nurse (LPN), registered nurse (RN), and advanced practice nurse (APN) staffing levels as well as inpatient and outpatient surgical operations and emergency department (ED) visits within 4 years of a hospital closure.
Author(s): Jing Dong, Siying Liu, Asefeh Faraz Covelli, Guido Cataife
Citation: Health Economics, 33(12), 2687-2707
Date: 12/2024
Type: Document
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National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey: 2022 Emergency Department Summary Tables
Provides data on ambulatory care emergency department (ED) hospital visits in 2022. Table 1 provides metropolitan/nonmetropolitan ED visit data based on hospital location.
Date: 11/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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The Potential for Hospital System Integration to Improve the Financial Outlook of Rural Hospitals in the United States
Provides an overview of the current financial status of rural hospitals and their risk of closure, as defined by days of cash on hand and total margins. Discusses the impact of rural hospital closures on local communities, including on health outcomes, demographics, and the economy. Explores the extent to which affiliating with, merging with, or being acquired by a larger hospital system can impact the financial position of rural hospitals.
Author(s): Al Dobson, Michael Beins, Patrick McMahon, et al.
Date: 11/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Coalition to Strengthen America's Healthcare, Dobson DaVanzo & Associates
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Meeker Memorial Hospital: Bringing Sustainable Coordination of Care to its Patients and Community
Provides a profile of Meeker Memorial Hospital (MMH), a healthcare facility located in Minnesota and part of the 2022-2023 Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project (RHPTP). Discusses MMH's process to improve finances and operations, implement electronic medical record (EMR) training, partner with pharmacy schools, and more.
Date: 11/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Resource Center
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Fiscal Year 2024 Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Investments: Fact Sheet
Provides an overview of Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) grant programs in Fiscal Year 2024. Summarizes and briefly describes funding awarded to support rural hospitals, address rural behavioral health, expand the rural health workforce, increase access to care, advance maternal health, and support rural health research and policy analysis.
Date: 11/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy
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