And the dominoes begin to fall- Clinic in trump district announces closure in anticipation of medicaid cuts [View all]

[tulipsandroses]

Southwest Nebraska medical center announces plans to close, blames uncertainty over funding

The uncertainty over federal Medicaid funding appears to have claimed its first victim in Nebraska.
Community Hospital in McCook announced Wednesday that it will close Curtis Medical Center in Curtis, winding down its services over the next several months.
"Unfortunately, the current financial environment, driven by anticipated federal budget cuts to Medicaid, has made it impossible for us to continue operating all of our services, many of which have faced significant financial challenges for years," Troy Bruntz, President and CEO of Community Hospital, said in a news release.
The budget reconciliation bill that the House of Representatives voted to approve on Thursday contains several provisions that experts say will slash Medicaid, which rural hospitals are more dependent on than their urban counterparts.
Earlier this week, during a Zoom meeting put on by the multi-state organization United Today Stronger Tomorrow, officials estimated that up to six Nebraska hospitals could be forced to close if the bill passes.
"We currently have six hospitals that that we feel are in a critical financial state, three that are in an impending kind of closure or conversion over to the rural emergency hospital model,” Jed Hansen, executive director for the Nebraska Rural Health Association, said during the meeting. "We would likely see the closures within a year to two years of once [the bill is] fully enacted.”
https://nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news/news-articles/southwest-nebraska-hospital-announces-plans-to-close-blames-uncertainty-over-funding/