Rural News Clips, Aug. 6, 2024
Why rural hospitals are cutting OB-GYN services to stay open; Medicaid unwinding dumped millions; rural childcare still at risk despite federal funds
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POLITICS AND ELECTIONS
Minnesota Reformer
From a Small-City Classroom to the White House: Harris to Name Walz as V.P. Nominee
Aug. 6, 2024
“Gov. Tim Walz fused his everyman personality with an optimistic progressive message to win the most important audition of his political career the past few weeks, winning the quick admiration of Democratic activists — and Vice President Kamala Harris, who named Walz as her running mate Tuesday.”
Votebeat Arizona
Court reverses ruling that narrowed the path for registering to vote in Arizona without proof of citizenship
Aug. 2, 2024
“On Aug. 1, a panel of judges on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the initial panel’s temporary ruling to block voter’s registering with the state form without providing documented proof of citizenship. Those registrants will now be added to the voter rolls, but will only be allowed to vote in federal elections, as was the practice before the initial panel’s ruling.”
CHILD CARE
The Daily Yonder
Family Child Care Could Be the Solution for More Access to Pre-K for Rural Families
Aug. 6, 2024
“By ‘leveraging the existing infrastructure for providing pre-K in the family child care homes’ the solution wouldn’t require the states to make big capital investments or search for more teachers in the short term.”
WLOS Asheville
Rural childcare facilities at risk despite small federal grant boost
July 31, 2024
“Childcare centers across the mountains are scrambling to stay afloat after a major loss in federal dollars.”
On June 30, $300 million “COVID dollars for early education were set to run out.”
“Just before that deadline, the North Carolina General Assembly passed $67 million to extend the childcare grants through the end of the year.”
“This leaves center directors and advocates worried about what is next.”
“North Carolina dedicates less than $1 billion annually to early childhood education.”
“However, the state gives more than $11 billion each year to Kindergarten through 12th grade education.”
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
The Texas Tribune
Join us November 13-14 for two days of conversations on the future of rural Texas
Aug. 1, 2024
“Join us Nov. 13 and 14 at the University of Texas at San Antonio Downtown when we'll discuss where rural Texas is and where it can go.”
“The two-day event will feature ranchers and farmers, elected officials and civic leaders from every corner of Texas and across the country.”
“Panel topics, speakers and special events will be announced over the coming weeks.”
HEALTH CARE
News Medical Life Sciences
Telemedicine usage can have unexpected impact on rural communities' access to local care
Aug. 1, 2024
“Use of [telehealth] was rising steadily in the years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic and it has now become commonplace.”
“In a recent paper, [researchers] investigated the financial effects of telemedicine. Their research reveals that the convenient service may have unexpected consequences on patients' long-term access to acute care.”
Axios
The states with the most uninsured Americans, mapped
Aug. 6, 2024
“Texas is home to the country's largest share of Americans under 65 without health insurance, according to new Census Bureau data, with 18.8% of residents uninsured as of 2022.”
“That's a big improvement over 2006, when 27.6% of Texans were uninsured — but still nearly double the national uninsured rate of 9.5%.”
However, “more recent preliminary data shows an uptick in the overall uninsured rate as states cut Medicaid rolls and unemployment rises.”
The article features a county-level map showing the percentage of uninsured people in each state as of 2022. Florida, Georgia and Wyoming also had high numbers of uninsured people.
Axios
Axios: Rich-Poor Divide In U.S. Hospitals Widens As 700+ At Risk Of Closing
Aug. 6, 2024
“Some of America's largest hospital systems saw their financials soar in the first half of 2024. And yet, more than 700 facilities across the country still are at risk of closing.”
“Big, mostly for-profit health systems see improved margins while smaller facilities in outlying areas are barely hanging on.”
“That could worsen access for some of the most vulnerable Americans — and hasten consolidation in an industry.”
“Smaller nonprofit hospitals, especially in rural areas, that made it through the crisis with the help of government aid are paring services like maternity wards and struggling to stay open.”
NATIVE AMERICANS
Kaiser Health News
Native American Public Health Officials Are Stuck in Data Blind Spot
Aug. 6, 2024
“It’s not easy to make public health decisions without access to good data. And epidemiologists and public health workers for Native American communities say they’re often in the dark because state and federal agencies restrict their access to the latest numbers.”
“The 2010 reauthorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act gave tribal epidemiology centers public health authority and requires the federal Department of Health and Human Services to grant them access to and use of data and other protected health information that’s regularly distributed to state and local officials.”
“Tribal epidemiology center workers have told government investigators that’s not often the case.”
“Tribal health officials have repeatedly said data denials impeded their responses to disease outbreaks, including slowing contact tracing during the pandemic and an ongoing syphilis outbreak in the Midwest and Southwest.”
SAFETY NET PROGRAMS
Stat
Millions of people became uninsured as Medicaid programs cut coverage, new data show
Aug. 6, 2024
“The national uninsured rate rose from 7.7% to 8.2% earlier this year, a result of states booting millions of Americans from their state Medicaid programs, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”
“The 7.7% uninsured rate in 2023 was a record low at the time, but didn’t factor in any of the people who were losing their Medicaid coverage.”
“as a record low at the time, but didn’t factor in any of the people who were losing their Medicaid coverage.”
“Overall, more than 27 million people had no form of health insurance as of March 2024, compared with more than 25 million people at the same time in 2023.”
“More than 1 million working-age adults entered the ranks of the uninsured, while 700,000 kids younger than 18 also lost their coverage.”