Rural issues
One in seven Americans live in rural areas and rely on rural hospitals and health systems for the health and well-being of their communities.
Medicare pays most acute care hospitals under the inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS). Some of these hospitals receive additional support from Medicare to help address potential financial challenges associated with being rural, geographically isolated and low volume. These programs are Low-…
Arkansas Children’s Hospital is utilizing telemedicine to expand access to care and support rural hospitals that lack pediatric cardiac MRI and CT expertise.
Rural Health News Update for February 27, 2026.
In part two of this conversation, leaders from Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and Mercer University School of Medicine reveal how targeted pediatric scholarships and deep community partnerships are building a sustainable pipeline of pediatricians committed to serving rural communities.
Highlights of the 2026 AHA Rural Health Leadership Conference.
2024 Rural Health Services Council Roster.
Maintaining a trained workforce is one of the greatest challenges facing rural hospitals today. In Alabama, the shortage is particularly and increasingly severe, especially when it comes to nurses. East Alabama Health is addressing the problem in multiple ways.
Clifton-Fine Hospital in St. Lawrence County, N.Y., adjacent to the Canadian border, was long challenged by low patient numbers and an outdated, cramped emergency room so small and crowded that staff struggled to treat multiple patients with space or privacy.
In this Advancing Health encore episode, Josh Neff, CEO of CommonSpirit Mercy Hospital, discusses a new cutting-edge communication platform that sends patient EKGs directly from the ambulance to the cardiologist in real time.