Keeping rural America strong means building healthy communities. Our healthcare coverage focuses on all the important issues in rural health, including access to critical care, affordability, the future of rural hospitals, the rural response to the Covid-19 pandemic, drug addiction and abuse, and much more.

Doctors Trained Abroad Want to See You Now
Some states are looking at underemployed immigrant healthcare workers as a source of medical staff for underserved and rural areas.
More RUral Health Stories

Rural Superintendents Lament: ‘We Went from Being Heroes to Villains’
Public schools during the pandemic often “bore the brunt” of communities’ outrage and frustration over the unprecedented disruptions to our daily lives.

‘Cardiac Psychologists’ Help Rural Heart-Attack Victims Manage Anxiety
A program at East Carolina University teams cardiologists with psychologists to address the complex emotional and physiological impacts of heart attacks.

Randomized Study Will Test Effectiveness of ‘Home Hospitalization’ for Rural Patients
Two rural U.S. healthcare systems will conduct a three-year study to see if intensive home care plus telehealth can successfully treat patients who would otherwise have to be admitted for traditional hospital care. Could the project provide more convenient access to hospital care for rural patients?
Keep your finger on the pulse of rural health news.
Even More to Explore In Rural Health

New Covid Infections Climb 50% over Past Two Weeks in Rural Counties
The metropolitan infection rate is higher than the rural rate in all but six states. The Northeast is the current trouble spot.

Survey: Almost Half of Americans Are Unfamiliar with Food Benefit Programs
Inflation may cause more families to go hungry. Many don’t know where to turn for help, according to a survey by a hunger relief organization.

Number of New Covid Infections Climbs Slightly in Rural Counties
The rate of death from Covid-19 was 40% higher in rural counties than metropolitan last week.

Q&A: One Framework for Understanding Teen Suicide in Rural America
Dante Chinni, data journalist and director of the American Communities Project, on what we can do about deaths of despair in rural areas.

Nearly Half of Rural Hospitals Lose Money on Childbirth Services
A large number of rural hospitals that cease obstetrics programs wind up closing later, researcher says.

Rural Infection Rate Drops for 11th Straight Week
The rural death rate fell by 40% last week, but it remained higher than the metropolitan death rate.