The video below highlights that small towns and rural communities, which have become popular with remote workers and retirees, will be hit hardest by the cuts. The loss of these hospitals and clinics means that doctor appointments and emergency care will become increasingly distant for residents.
The speaker examines several states where a significant number of rural hospitals are at risk of closure or major service reduction:
New Mexico: Warned of 6 to 15 hospital closures, creating long ambulance rides for patients.
Louisiana: Up to 33 rural hospitals are at risk, with services like maternal care already being cut.
Kentucky: About 35 rural hospitals are at risk, which is one of the highest numbers nationally, leading to concerns about OB capacity.
Texas: Estimates show over 70 rural hospitals could be vulnerable, leading to a major influx of rural patients into big city hospitals.
Kansas: Over 60 hospitals are at risk, with 87% of the state’s rural hospitals already operating in the red.
Mississippi, Oklahoma, Georgia, California, Missouri, Tennessee, and Alabama are also detailed as facing significant risks of service cuts or full hospital closures due to the financial squeeze.
The video explains that the cuts trigger a “domino effect”: hospitals first trim unprofitable services like OB or behavioral health, which causes patients to leak to larger systems, ultimately destabilizing the entire facility and leading to full closure. The speaker concludes with a warning to people living in or planning to retire in rural areas to pay attention to their local hospital’s status.
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