The Future of (Rural) Health Care

[Captain Obvious]

It's happening now, as I predicted.

Rural hospitals are going out of business at a rapid pace and we're steamrolling toward single payer. CMS (Medicare/Medicaid) prefers dealing with a small number of huge organizations vs. a huge number of all-size organizations and reimbursement is such that it's becoming impossible for small/rural hospitals to keep their doors open, so rural (and semi-rural) communities are faced with getting their healthcare long distance. It will be ER's (urgi-cares), FQHC's and the like if you don't live in the city. If you live in the city, you'll basically get your health care from a Walmart monopoly.

Resistance is futile.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/05/28/316671516/georgia-looks-to-reopen-some-closed-hospitals-as-ers

Georgia Looks To Reopen Some Closed Hospitals As ERs

An ambulance races down an empty street in Folkston, Ga., population about 5,000. It bypasses Charlton Memorial Hospital, makes a sharp right turn and speeds to an emergency room 40 miles away.

Why? Because Charlton Memorial Hospital has been closed since last August.

Four of Georgia's 65 rural hospitals have shut down over the past two years. A dozen more have cut services in response to shrinking budgets.

[Peter1469]

Hope and Change, right?

[Captain Obvious]

I wouldn't say this is a direct effect of the ACA, this is something that the industry has been moving toward for years, decades now. The advent of the prospective payment system was the first step.

Obamacare is just moving things along quicker.

[darroll]

Our hospital has been broke for years.
The Mexicans and low life's go get all of their medic an needs met and then they leave town without paying the bill.
Obama care will fix that?

[Matty]

It's happening now, as I predicted.

Rural hospitals are going out of business at a rapid pace and we're steamrolling toward single payer. CMS (Medicare/Medicaid) prefers dealing with a small number of huge organizations vs. a huge number of all-size organizations and reimbursement is such that it's becoming impossible for small/rural hospitals to keep their doors open, so rural (and semi-rural) communities are faced with getting their healthcare long distance. It will be ER's (urgi-cares), FQHC's and the like if you don't live in the city. If you live in the city, you'll basically get your health care from a Walmart monopoly.

Resistance is futile.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/05/28/316671516/georgia-looks-to-reopen-some-closed-hospitals-as-ers

Georgia Looks To Reopen Some Closed Hospitals As ERs


We will make sure they get their mail though!

[KC]

Hope and Change, right?

Well, maybe change.

[zelmo1234]

There is no doubt that the rural hospital is under attack! But it does not matter, we are currently in the process of switching to a network that is cash only!

the day is quickly coming when the wealthy will have the best and fastest care in the world, and the rest will be lucky if they survive a minor illness

Doctors don't have to accept the ACA to make a living, they are finding ways to get out from under the governments thumb

[Blackrook]

I want the bad news to stop, but somehow it never does.

[Montoya]

Who gives a shit about the rural jack offs? They are mostly right wing ingnorant idiots. Maybe Jethro and Joe Bob can fix the system LOL.

[zelmo1234]

Who gives a shit about the rural jack offs? They are mostly right wing ingnorant idiots. Maybe Jethro and Joe Bob can fix the system LOL.

I say I really agree with you! I think that they should stop sending food to the cities! we could start with NYC as they want to regulate everything that people eat anyway!

Then when the brilliant city folks come crying to those ignorant people in the country for food? they could take everything they own in exchange for a months food! Then they could run back to there beautiful cities filled with crime and work really hard so they could afford the next months rations.

And when they just can't take it any longer, they can choose to starve to death, because we could not want to infringe on their freedom

[lynn]

Smaller hospitals can't compete with one hospital system that wants all business using that hospital. Many states now only have one big hospital system along with one big insurance company that has driven off all competition. This is not good news for the public for these two are the biggest reasons why cost will never come down.

Smaller hospitals should work towards breaking up and creating more 24 hour urgent care centers that covers the entire state. People that require inpatient treatment and must have 24 hour care, a smaller more efficient hospital could be created for these type of patients only. We really need to stop all of the unnecessary trips to ER's if we have more 24 hour care clinics available for the public's needs.

According to the Bureau of Statistics on health services, only a small percentage of the population actually require overnight stays at a hospital so this doesn't justify the expansion of existing hospitals that are creating monopolies.