MedPage Today August 9, 2024
— Private insurers are paying less than the cost of care, data show
More rural hospitals are in danger of closing, in large part because of insufficient reimbursement from private health plans, a report found.
“The primary reason hundreds of rural hospitals are at risk of closing is that private insurance plans are paying them less than what it costs to deliver services to patients,” the report from the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform (CHQPR) noted. “Although the at-risk hospitals are losing money on uninsured patients and Medicaid patients, losses on private insurance patients are the biggest cause of overall losses.”
The report documents 703 rural hospitals nationwide at risk of closing, compromising almost a third of rural...