Rural issues
The following is a compilation of recent news from the AHA and its Rural Health Services team, whose focus is to ensure that rural hospitals’ and health systems’ unique needs are national priorities.
In this conversation, Julie Petersen, CEO of Kittitas Valley Healthcare, discusses how her organization kept its promise to preserve essential obstetric services for women of all ages.
An infographic released by the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center highlights the decline of maternity care access in rural counties across the U.S. from 2010-2022, finding that nearly 59% of rural counties did not have any hospital-based obstetric services as of 2022.
Improving access to rural health care is a top priority for AHA, and its 2024 Rural Advocacy Agenda lays the groundwork to improve the system as a whole. In this conversation, three AHA experts drill down on specific steps needed to help rural health care stay financially sound and ready to serve.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services July 10 issued a proposed rule that would increase Medicare hospital outpatient prospective payment system rates by a net 2.6% in calendar year 2025 compared to 2024. This includes a proposed 3.0% market basket update, offset by a 0.4 percentage…
In this conversation, three AHA experts drill down on specific steps needed to help rural health care stay financially sound and ready to serve.
According to a 2022 policy brief from the National Rural Health Association, rural areas can experience a severe lack of access to and availability of the full range of behavioral health care services, challenges with mental health workforce recruitment and retention, and technology barriers…
Highlights of the committee meeting for AHA Rural Health Services on May 16, 2024.
In this conversation, Brandie Manuel, R.N., chief patient safety and quality officer at Jefferson Healthcare, discusses how the use of TeamSTEPPS and other tools are making a big difference in creating a thriving employee pipeline.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Innovation Center has announced it will host a Rural Health Hackathon in August.