rural health

Scaling Virtual Care Is Both a Moral and Financial Imperative, Sanford Health Exec Says

At MedCity News’ INVEST Digital Health conference, Sanford Health’s virtual care chief Dave Newman pointed out that in rural America, virtual care often determines whether patients receive treatment at all. He described how Sanford has expanded beyond video visits to include various other modalities like e-visit questionnaires, remote monitoring and even phone consults — saving patients time and money while also closing critical care gaps.

By Katie Adams

Hospitals, Policy

Without Clear Strategy, CMS’ $50B Rural Hospital Fund Risks Falling Short

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act introduced a new $50 billion fund to offer rural hospitals a financial lifeline. One expert cautions that this effort will fail to address systemic challenges without transparency, clear metrics and long-term infrastructure investment strategies.

By Katie Adams

MedCity Influencers

A doctor with a stethoscope sitting in front of.a laptop with a digital cybersecurity certificate

The Hidden Fallout of Rural Hospital Closures: Patient Care Suffers – and So Does Data Security

Across the U.S., nearly 700 rural hospitals are at risk of closure. When they shut down, the impacts cascade: broken continuity, delayed care, and increased cyber risk in every new system a patient must navigate.

By Jackie Mattingly

Hospitals, Health Tech Providers,

Ballad Health CIO: Tech Should ‘Fade into the Background’

Pam Austin, CIO of Ballad Health, detailed how her health system is helping clinicians spend less time on screens and more time with patients.

By Katie Adams

Hospitals, Policy, Providers

How Badly Would Medicaid Cuts Hurt Healthcare Access in Rural America?

If the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is signed into law, it would result in a $50.4 billion reduction in federal Medicaid spending on rural hospitals over the next decade, which could put 338 rural hospitals at risk of closure, according to new analyses.

By Katie Adams

Hospitals

‘Innovation Out of Necessity’: Why Virtual Care Is Crucial for Rural Providers

Virtual care isn’t just a “nice-to-have” for rural hospitals — it’s necessary to ensure patients are getting the care they need, said Dave Newman, chief medical officer of virtual care at Sanford Health.

By Katie Adams

Hospitals, Providers

Intermountain Health Exec: Hub-and-Spoke Models Could Save Rural Healthcare

Dan Liljenquist, Intermountain Health’s chief strategy officer, said that more large health systems should employ a hub-and-spoke model to ensure that rural providers can thrive. Under this model, large health systems partner with rural hospitals — with the rural “spoke” hospitals gaining access to the larger “hub” health system’s technology, staff, medication discounts and more.

By Katie Adams

MedCity Influencers

Community Pharmacies Fill Critical Healthcare Gaps in Rural Areas — Here’s How We Can Empower and Support Them

We need to equip pharmacists with technology that can help them to make impactful clinical interventions in the pharmacy and reimburse them for these services, which would help to address the provider shortage.

By Yoona Kim

MedCity Influencers

Rural Healthcare Needs More Than Just Telehealth

People working the most vital occupations, like farmers and ranchers, call the most remote areas in this country home. Their health shouldn’t suffer due to their choice of employment.

By Karen Conley

Hospitals, Providers

Why More Than 30% of Rural Hospitals Are at Risk of Closure

More than 700 hospitals across the rural U.S. are at risk of closing due to their financial woes — and for more than half of these hospitals, the risk of closure is immediate, according to a new report. The report argued this is due largely to inadequate reimbursement from health plans.

By Katie Adams

MedCity Influencers

Beyond the Care Desert: Addressing the Hidden Challenges to Rural Maternal Mental Health Care

It is imperative that everyone in the care continuum knows the warning signs of peripartum depression.

By Lora Sparkman

MedCity Influencers

Why Conditions are Ripe for Enabling Care Everywhere

5G can play a substantial role in transforming healthcare delivery by fostering care anywhere.

By Erez Yarkoni and Ashif Jiwani

MedCity Influencers

How Real-World Data Is Helping Close the Rural-Urban Health Divide

Real-world analysis can provide insights into how factors largely out of rural residents’ control impact health outcomes and access to medical care.

By Stuart Green

Health Tech

Main Street Health Rakes In $315M to Scale Value-Based Care in Rural America

Main Street Health announced the close of a $315 funding round at HLTH — some of the investors included UnitedHealthcare, Humana, Elevance, Centene and CVS. The startup, which scales value-based care in rural areas for both Medicare Advantage and original Medicare patients, also announced that it is expanding to 26 states.

By Katie Adams

Health Tech

More Than 30% of Rural Hospitals Are at Risk of Closure, Report Warns

More than 600 rural U.S. hospitals — which is more than 30% of the country’s rural hospitals — are at risk of closing due to their financial instability, according to a new report. The report argued that the dire financial situation among the nation’s rural hospitals stems from two main issues: low financial reserves and inadequate payments from private health plans.

By Katie Adams

rural health

Scaling Virtual Care Is Both a Moral and Financial Imperative, Sanford Health Exec Says

Without Clear Strategy, CMS’ $50B Rural Hospital Fund Risks Falling Short

The Hidden Fallout of Rural Hospital Closures: Patient Care Suffers – and So Does Data Security

Ballad Health CIO: Tech Should ‘Fade into the Background’

How Badly Would Medicaid Cuts Hurt Healthcare Access in Rural America?

‘Innovation Out of Necessity’: Why Virtual Care Is Crucial for Rural Providers

Intermountain Health Exec: Hub-and-Spoke Models Could Save Rural Healthcare

Community Pharmacies Fill Critical Healthcare Gaps in Rural Areas — Here’s How We Can Empower and Support Them

Rural Healthcare Needs More Than Just Telehealth

Why More Than 30% of Rural Hospitals Are at Risk of Closure

Beyond the Care Desert: Addressing the Hidden Challenges to Rural Maternal Mental Health Care

Why Conditions are Ripe for Enabling Care Everywhere

How Real-World Data Is Helping Close the Rural-Urban Health Divide

Main Street Health Rakes In $315M to Scale Value-Based Care in Rural America

More Than 30% of Rural Hospitals Are at Risk of Closure, Report Warns

Telebehavioral Health Is as Effective as In-person for Rural Populations

As Workforce Shortages Intensify, CMS’ Value-based Care Ambitions Hang in the Balance

How a Rural Health System Is Looking at Virtual Care and Remote Patient Monitoring