ST. LOUIS - A large number of hospitals in rural Missouri could soon be out of business.
According to a report from the Center for Health Care Quality and Payment Reform, they found that a large number of hospitals in Missouri are set to close to due financial troubles.
Harold Miller, President and CEO of the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform, joined 'The Show' Monday to talk about the importance of healthcare access for rural Missourians.
Miller explained that the financial issues at the rural hospitals began before the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Many hospitals were closing before the pandemic. Interestingly enough during the pandemic, the number of closures went down because there was so much federal assistance the hospitals received during the pandemic, but that has now ended," Miller said, "Many of these hospitals are now actually losing more money because their costs have been going up and insurance plans haven't been paying them adequately to cover those costs."
Miller says the closures in rural Missouri have created 'medical deserts' in some parts of the state.
"Many people in urban areas are used to the fact that there are multiple hospitals that they could go to and multiple urgent care centers and things like that in a rural community, particularly in a small rural community, there may be only one place to go for all health care services," Miller said, "It may be the only source of primary care in the community. And so if that hospital closes, that means that there may be no um health care services available in the community at all."
Of the 57 rural hospitals in the state of Missouri, 19 of them are at risk of being closed, with eight of those 19 being at the risk of immediate closure.
Miller says that the rise of costs increasing is a big reason why some hospitals are being forced to close.
"Large, small and private insurance plans haven't been paying enough to be able to cover those costs and it hurts rural hospitals more in many cases because they are smaller and the cost of delivering services is higher," Miller said.