Across the U.S., more than 800 hospitals — 40 percent of all rural hospitals in the country — are either at immediate or high risk of closure, according to a report from the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform.
More than 500 rural hospitals in the U.S. were at immediate risk of closure before the COVID-19 pandemic because of financial losses and lack of reserves to maintain operations. The hospitals identified as being at immediate risk of closure had a cumulative negative total margin over the most recent three-year period, and their financial situation has likely deteriorated because of the pandemic.
The more than 300 hospitals at high risk closure either have low financial reserves or high dependence on nonpatient service revenues such as local taxes or state subsidies, according to the report.
Here are the 12 states where more than 50 percent of the rural hospitals are at risk of closing, according to the CHQPR report:
Connecticut
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 3 (100 percent)
Kansas
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 76 (72 percent)
Hawaii
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 8 (67 percent)
Alabama
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 30 (63 percent)
Mississippi
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 41 (62 percent)
Arkansas
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 29 (60 percent)
New York
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 30 (59 percent)
Tennessee
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 30 (59 percent)
Oklahoma
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 41 (56 percent)
Texas
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 82 (56 percent)
Missouri
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 31 (54 percent)
Louisiana
Rural hospitals at high risk of closing: 26 (53 percent)