Rural Healthcare

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, before I was elected to serve in the House of Representatives, I spent nearly 30 years in the nonprofit healthcare field assisting those facing life-changing diseases and disabilities with therapists, rehabilitation service managers, and a licensed nursing home administrator.

I am acutely aware of the challenges many face when it comes to obtaining reasonably priced healthcare. It is especially critical for rural America, like much of the 15th Congressional District of Pennsylvania that I am honored to serve.

As the Member of Congress representing nearly one-third of the land mass of Pennsylvania, one of the most rural districts east of the Mississippi, I am keenly aware of the problems that my constituents face when accessing medical services.

We are facing a healthcare crisis in our Nation's rural areas. These often disadvantaged populations are still struggling to access affordable, quality care. Many remain uninsured. Most are underinsured. However, access to quality care remains the largest challenge.

Even when people gain access to health insurance, it doesn't mean equal access to care. Rural hospitals across the country are closing, leaving patients without access to emergency rooms and long-term care facilities.

In addition to hospital closures, a workforce shortage plagues rural America. The patient-to-primary care physician ratio in rural areas is only 39.8 physicians per 100,000 people compared to 53.3 physicians per 100,000 in urban areas. Recruitment and retention of experienced professionals, including primary care physicians, is an ongoing challenge.

Furthermore, the opioid epidemic that is sweeping the Nation has ravaged our rural communities, leaving even more of the population in need of crucial health services.

Adolescents and young adults living in rural areas are more vulnerable to opioid abuse than their urban counterparts. The prevalence of fatal drug overdoses has skyrocketed in rural areas. High unemployment and a greater rate of types of injuries that result in prescriptions for opioid medications have contributed to this.

On March 5, 2010, Congress passed sweeping legislation--the Affordable Care Act--which fundamentally realigned our Nation's healthcare system. Since passage of this bill, my worst nightmares have become a reality, as the law's interpretation continues to drive up costs, saddle small businesses with burdensome regulations, and impose unfunded mandates on people throughout the Commonwealth by shifting costs from the Federal Government to the States.

Unfortunately, what we have also seen since the passage of this law is the consolidation of providers in the healthcare industry. Small and independent providers were unable to bear the burden of the ACA's various mandates, and many of them were forced to merge with larger health systems that have dramatically consolidated care over the last decade.

Luckily, Congress has been able to repeal key components of this bill since it was first enacted, including the individual mandate. Additionally, as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic that uniquely strained rural healthcare systems in Pennsylvania and across the country, we must always look for ways to stabilize and recover from what has been a turbulent few years. Moving forward, we must provide commonsense reforms that improve our Nation's healthcare system and access across the country, including those in rural America.

One of the best ways to do this is by promoting access to telehealth. As part of the National Telehealth Awareness Week, this week I plan to reintroduce the HEALTH Act, which allows community health centers and rural health clinics to continue to provide telehealth services and receive fair reimbursement for doing so. It is these types of policies that promote access to care for all Americans, and I look forward to working with my colleagues to fix our flawed healthcare system.

Currently, healthcare costs have gone up, premiums have increased by double digits, but choices have decreased. That is not right. It is not fair, and it is not feasible. There must be a better way, and I know that together we will work to find a stable transition to a 21st century healthcare system that works for everyone in America, particularly those who live in rural regions where the need is great and services are scarce.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source