Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Closures of healthcare facilities and services
Key Facts About Hospitals
Presents information and data on hospitals and hospital spending. Covers national hospital spending, the hospital industry, use of hospital care, out-of-pocket spending and medical debt, hospital finances, and more. Includes a section on rural hospitals, which describes the prevalence of rural hospitals, rural hospital characteristics, discharges by payer, profit margins, and openings and closings of rural hospitals.
Author(s): Zachary Levinson, Scott Hulver, Jamie Godwin, Tricia Neuman
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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Presents information and data on hospitals and hospital spending. Covers national hospital spending, the hospital industry, use of hospital care, out-of-pocket spending and medical debt, hospital finances, and more. Includes a section on rural hospitals, which describes the prevalence of rural hospitals, rural hospital characteristics, discharges by payer, profit margins, and openings and closings of rural hospitals.
Author(s): Zachary Levinson, Scott Hulver, Jamie Godwin, Tricia Neuman
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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Maternity Care in California: An Environmental Scan
Examines factors affecting declining hospital-based maternity care services in California and identifies approaches to increase access and quality of care. Includes discussion of rural hospital closures and rural quality of care challenges, and highlights rural program models in California and Alaska.
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: California Hospital Association
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Examines factors affecting declining hospital-based maternity care services in California and identifies approaches to increase access and quality of care. Includes discussion of rural hospital closures and rural quality of care challenges, and highlights rural program models in California and Alaska.
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: California Hospital Association
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Instability Continues to Threaten Rural Health Safety Net: Reduced Reimbursements, Dwindling Access to Care and Deteriorating Population Health Status
Examines factors contributing to the instability of the rural healthcare safety net, including policy-related reimbursement cuts and changes to payer mixes. Presents data on rural hospitals that have stopped offering obstetrics and chemotherapy services. Explores aspects of rural population health and social drivers of health as they relate to rural healthcare delivery challenges.
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Chartis Center for Rural Health
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Examines factors contributing to the instability of the rural healthcare safety net, including policy-related reimbursement cuts and changes to payer mixes. Presents data on rural hospitals that have stopped offering obstetrics and chemotherapy services. Explores aspects of rural population health and social drivers of health as they relate to rural healthcare delivery challenges.
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Chartis Center for Rural Health
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Chartis Center for Rural Health Research & Resources for the 2025 National Rural Health Association's Rural Health Policy Institute Conference
Offers research and analysis of the stability of the rural healthcare safety net. Includes Instability Continues to Threaten Rural Health Safety Net: Reduced Reimbursements, Dwindling Access to Care, and Deteriorating Population Health Status, and presentation slides on this report from the 2025 National Rural Health Association Policy Institute. Provides links to national and state data tables showing the financial impact of federal policies on rural hospitals.
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Chartis Center for Rural Health
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Offers research and analysis of the stability of the rural healthcare safety net. Includes Instability Continues to Threaten Rural Health Safety Net: Reduced Reimbursements, Dwindling Access to Care, and Deteriorating Population Health Status, and presentation slides on this report from the 2025 National Rural Health Association Policy Institute. Provides links to national and state data tables showing the financial impact of federal policies on rural hospitals.
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Chartis Center for Rural Health
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What's Going on in Greater Minnesota? – The Decline in Nursing Bed Capacity
A recorded webinar that discusses the research report, The Declining Capacity of Nursing Facility Care in Rural Minnesota. Focuses on shrinking availability of nursing home beds, workforce shortages, and closure of long-term care facilities. Transcript available below description.
Author(s): Kelly Asche
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Center for Rural Policy and Development
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A recorded webinar that discusses the research report, The Declining Capacity of Nursing Facility Care in Rural Minnesota. Focuses on shrinking availability of nursing home beds, workforce shortages, and closure of long-term care facilities. Transcript available below description.
Author(s): Kelly Asche
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Center for Rural Policy and Development
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146 Rural Hospitals Closed or Stopped Providing Inpatient Services from 2005 to 2023 in the United States
Line chart showing the number of rural hospital closures and rural inpatient unit closures between 2005 and 2023.
Author(s): Anil Rupasingha, Julie Cho
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Line chart showing the number of rural hospital closures and rural inpatient unit closures between 2005 and 2023.
Author(s): Anil Rupasingha, Julie Cho
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Federal Assistance and Rural Hospital Closings: The Impact of the USDA Community Facilities Program
Examines how the USDA Rural Development Community Facilities (CF) Program's effects on rural hospital closures. Includes data on rural hospital closures and CF investments by region, and analyzes facility survival probability of hospitals which did or did not receive CF funding.
Additional links: Summary
Author(s): Anil Rupasingha, Julia Cho
Date: 01/2025
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Examines how the USDA Rural Development Community Facilities (CF) Program's effects on rural hospital closures. Includes data on rural hospital closures and CF investments by region, and analyzes facility survival probability of hospitals which did or did not receive CF funding.
Additional links: Summary
Author(s): Anil Rupasingha, Julia Cho
Date: 01/2025
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Rural Hospitals: Community Cornerstones Face Perilous Threats to Care
Infographic presenting data regarding the importance of rural hospitals to their communities. Includes information on workforce and financial challenges experienced by rural hospitals, as well as the impact of hospital closures on access to care. Provides recommendations on actions to support rural hospitals and communities.
Date: 2025
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Infographic presenting data regarding the importance of rural hospitals to their communities. Includes information on workforce and financial challenges experienced by rural hospitals, as well as the impact of hospital closures on access to care. Provides recommendations on actions to support rural hospitals and communities.
Date: 2025
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Obstetric Care Access at Rural and Urban Hospitals in the United States
Offers data showing losses and gains of obstetric care for 4,964 short-term acute care hospitals between 2010 and 2022. Offers comparisons of rural and urban hospitals.
Author(s): Katy B. Kozhimannil, Julia D. Interrante, Caitlin Carroll, et al.
Date: 12/2024
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Offers data showing losses and gains of obstetric care for 4,964 short-term acute care hospitals between 2010 and 2022. Offers comparisons of rural and urban hospitals.
Author(s): Katy B. Kozhimannil, Julia D. Interrante, Caitlin Carroll, et al.
Date: 12/2024
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2024 National Preparedness Report
Summarizes progress made and challenges that remain in building and sustaining capabilities needed to prevent and recover from threats and incidents that pose the greatest risk to the nation. Covers calendar year 2023 and places particular emphasis on mass care services, public information and warning, infrastructure systems, and cybersecurity. Mentions rural throughout, and discusses rural hospital closures and rural residents' unreliable access to medical care during disasters.
Date: 12/2024
Sponsoring organization: Federal Emergency Management Agency
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Summarizes progress made and challenges that remain in building and sustaining capabilities needed to prevent and recover from threats and incidents that pose the greatest risk to the nation. Covers calendar year 2023 and places particular emphasis on mass care services, public information and warning, infrastructure systems, and cybersecurity. Mentions rural throughout, and discusses rural hospital closures and rural residents' unreliable access to medical care during disasters.
Date: 12/2024
Sponsoring organization: Federal Emergency Management Agency
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