Nearly 90% of the land in the United States is rural and about one in five people, or some 60 million, live throughout it according to the U.S. Census. Data also show rural residents are older, have worse health outcomes and less health care access than their urban counterparts. There are about 2,000 rural hospitals available to intervene in their health emergencies and over 40% operate at a loss, according to Michael Topchik, the executive director of the Chartis Center for Rural Health, a healthcare analytics and consulting firm. Risk of closure looms, especially for hospitals in the southern half of the U.S.
Read the full article: The Fragile Economies at the Heart of Rural Hospitals //
Source: https://www.reuters.com/graphics/USA-HEALTH/RURAL-HOSPITALS/zgpolkmdbvd/