Issue Position: Rural Health Care

Issue Position

Wyoming is blessed with pristine landscapes, spread from Sundance to Evanston . These landscapes also present many challenges. Long distances, adverse weather, and provider shortages make obtaining quality health care difficult. Our unique circumstances require us to work together, share resources, and develop networks.

I believe the federal government must continue to recognize the important differences between urban and rural health care providers - and respond with appropriate policy. As you may know, rural hospitals are more dependent on Medicare payments as part of their total revenue. In fact, Medicare accounts for approximately 70 percent of total revenue for small, rural hospitals.

Additionally, rural hospitals have lower patient volumes, but these hospitals must compete nationally to recruit doctors, nurses, physical therapists, and emergency medical technicians. This is due to national health professional workforce shortages. Additional burdens are placed on these hospitals and providers due to higher rates of uninsured and underinsured patients who live in rural areas. Seniors living in rural areas also tend to be poorer and have more chronic health conditions.

There is still much work to be done to ensure the future financial stability of our rural health care delivery system. I commit to working to strengthen our rural hospitals, rural health clinics and community health centers. I commit to working to increase rural America 's access to primary health care services. And I commit to working to aid in the successful recruitment and retention of health care providers in rural and frontier America .

As we work here in Washington to craft various health care proposals, please know that I am staying in close touch with Wyoming 's providers, patients, administrators and elected representatives to gain insight into what is needed to make our state's health care delivery system work.

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