The rural hospital crisis is complicated. Finding a solution will be, too | Opinion
Tennessee leads the country in hospital losses because state government made crucial mistakes related to health care, and we are paying for them now.
Barbara Clinton, Randall Rice, Rich Henighan, Judy Roitman and Clare Sullivan
Guest columnists
Barbara Clinton, Randall Rice, Rich Henighan, Judy Roitman and Clare Sullivan represent the Tennessee Health Care Campaign.
At last the problem of Tennessee’s steady loss of rural hospitals is receiving attention, thanks in part to the nonpartisan Tennessee Health Care Campaign’s report, “The Ambulance is Our Emergency Room,” which was released in March. Developed by community representatives and academics, it identifies factors that influence hospital closures and the effect of a hospital closure on rural communities. In addition to strategies for sustaining rural health systems, preventing rural hospital closures and enabling communities to
Rural Tennessee is Losing More Hospitals Than Anywhere in the Country, but Covid-19 Isn t Fully to Blame dailyyonder.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailyyonder.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
I m seeing that a lot, said Pierce.
Individual attitudes regarding the COVID-19 vaccine are important but less important than the physical barriers to health care.
These trends point to an all-too familiar problem. East Tennessee’s unequal distribution of health care resources and infrastructure which already damage the health of Tennesseans here in innumerable ways hurt even more in a global pandemic.
Addressing these inequalities will require a multipronged approach in the short term and investment in the health of vulnerable communities in the long term, experts say.
Bringing down barriers
People in rural or vulnerable counties are at greater risk of living far from emergency care centers and overall have less access to primary care.
Democrats in Congress plan to use the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill to advance President Joe Biden’s campaign promises to make affordable health care available to more Americans, reversing the Trump-era decline in the number of people with health insurance.
COVID-19 relief package includes expansion of health care coverage gazettextra.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from gazettextra.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.