Average Salary Expense in Rural and Urban Hospitals Before and During the Low Wage Index Policy, 2018–2022
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Description
Examines and compares wage patterns of Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), Rural Prospective Payment System (PPS) hospitals, and Urban PPS hospitals as related to the Low Wage Index Policy (LWIP) in effect from 2020-2022. Utilizes hospital data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Healthcare Cost Report Information System (HCRIS) between 2018 and 2022 and analyzes median salaries. Discusses the impact of Medicare payments and LWIP on hospitals.
Author(s)
Saleema Karim, George Pink, Kristie Thompson, Mark Holmes
Date
04/2026
Organization
North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
Tagged as
Critical Access Hospitals
· Hospitals
· Medicare
· Policy
· Reimbursement and payment models
· Rural-urban differences
· Statistics and data