This website is being reviewed for updates. Some information is offline. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Skip to main content
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Hospitals

Health System Challenges for Critical Access Hospitals: Findings from a National Survey of CAH Executives
Results of a 2019 survey of 174 respondents, examining challenges including uncompensated care, affordability of health insurance, patients seeking care beyond their local hospital, and prescription drug prices. Intended to help rural health policymakers in development of strategies to maintain Critical Access Hospital viability and access to healthcare in rural communities.
Author(s): Sharita Thomas, Kristie Thompson, Kathleen Knocke, George Pink
Date: 02/2021
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
view details
Quality Time: Sharing PIE - Involving Board and Leadership to Drive Quality Outcomes
Podcast recording exploring how a Critical Access Hospital (CAH) board and leadership are engaged with and support quality improvement work. Features quality, clinical, and board representatives from Paris Community Hospital, a CAH in Paris, Illinois.
Date: 02/2021
Sponsoring organization: Stratis Health
view details
Opioid-Related and Stimulant-Related Adult Inpatient Stays, 2012-2018
Presents statistics on inpatient hospital stays related to the dependence, abuse, and adverse effects of opioids and stimulants between 2012 and 2018. Examines data by patient characteristics, including age, sex, urban or rural location of residence, and income.
Date: 02/2021
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
view details
Accountable Care Hospitals and Preventable Emergency Department Visits for Rural Dementia Patients
Examines differences in the frequency of emergency department visits among rural and urban patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD). Compares the odds of preventable ED visits for ADRD patients at hospitals affiliated and not affiliated with an Accountable Care Organization (ACO).
Author(s): Nianyang Wang, Aitalohi Amaize, Jie Chen
Citation: Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 69(1), 185-190
Date: 01/2021
view details
January 2021 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) January 2021 meeting. Features a discussion on the expansion of telehealth in Medicare. Also covers payment adequacy and updates for hospital inpatient and outpatient services and the mandated report expanding the post-acute care transfer policy to hospice, physician and other health professional services, ambulatory surgical center services, outpatient dialysis services, hospice services, skilled nursing facility services, home health agency services, inpatient rehabilitation facility services, long-term care hospital services, and CMMI's development and implementation of alternative payment models.
Date: 01/2021
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
view details
Congress Establishes New Medicare Provider Category and Reimbursement for Rural Emergency Hospitals
Provides an overview of the Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) provider designation established in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. Discusses provider eligibility criteria, REH requirements and permitted services, and Medicare reimbursement. Highlights key questions that need to be addressed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Author(s): Emily J. Cook, Sandra M. DiVarco, Caroline Reigart
Citation: National Law Review, XI(5)
Date: 01/2021
view details
Use of Certified Health IT and Methods to Enable Interoperability by U.S. Non-Federal Acute Care Hospitals, 2019
Data brief examining hospital interoperability, including finding, sending, receiving, and integrating electronic health information (EHI) outside their health system, from 2017-2019. Examines rates of interoperability by hospital size, type, method of interoperability, and rural and suburban-urban status. Discusses barriers to EHI interoperability and steps forward.
Author(s): Christian Johnson, Yuriy Pylypchuk
Date: 01/2021
Sponsoring organization: Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
view details
Oklahoma Rural Hospital Closures by the Numbers
Research brief discussing rural hospital closures in Oklahoma and impacts of closures on access to care. Presents data on closures between 2005 and 2020, noting driving distance to the nearest open hospital. Addresses demographic characteristics of counties with closed hospitals and health equity impacts of closures.
Date: 01/2021
Sponsoring organization: Oklahoma State University Center for Rural Health
view details
Advancing Population Health in Rural Places: Key Lessons and Policy Opportunities
Discussion of topics including strategies to incorporate population health into rural health, how collaboration can help rural hospitals address population health issues, how rural healthcare systems can gain community support for population activities, and ways in which the rural healthcare workforce can be involved in population health. Examines various demonstration projects with roots in the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
Author(s): Keith J. Mueller, Delaney P. Bounds, Andrew F. Coburn, et al.
Date: 01/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
view details
HRSA's Evidence-Based Tele-Emergency Network Grant Program: Multi-Site Prospective Cohort Analysis Across Six Rural Emergency Department Telemedicine Networks
Examines Evidence-Based Tele-Emergency Network Grant Program (EB TNGP) grantees' provision of telehealth services in rural emergency departments (teleED) in 11 states. Features data and statistics on teleED processes and patients' characteristics, chief complaints, severity of illness, and discharge status.
Author(s): Sarah Heppner, Nicholas M. Mohr, Knute D. Carter, et al.
Citation: PLoS One, 16(1), e0243211
Date: 01/2021
view details