National Rural Health Day

Floor Speech

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Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, in small towns and communities across America, rural hospitals are critical lifelines. They provide emergency care, support seniors and veterans, deliver behavioral health services, assist mothers who are giving birth, supply pharmacy services, and serve as major local employers.

Yet, many rural hospitals are under serious strain. Nearly half are operating at negative margins. Since 2010, more than 150 rural hospitals have cut inpatient services or closed their doors permanently, including some in northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula.

These closures aren't happening because communities don't need care but because the financial reality of providing it in rural America keeps getting tougher.

When a rural hospital closes, families face hours-long drives in emergency situations, expectant mothers lose access to obstetric care, and seniors suffering from a heart attack or a stroke may arrive too late.

As we mark National Rural Health Day this week, we must renew and strengthen our commitment to rural hospitals by ensuring fair reimbursement, strengthening telehealth and infrastructure, and preserving access to critical resources like the 340B drug program, a key revenue stream for rural hospitals.

Rural hospitals must not only survive but thrive. We need to keep that because it is not about ZIP Codes.

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