Rural Hospitals
The Federation of American Hospitals (FAH) membership includes many rural hospitals across the nation. Rural hospitals serve more than 60 million Americans who live in rural regions, representing 20% of the entire U.S. population. Rural hospitals are often the sole provider of comprehensive medical care in their communities, and also are the largest or second largest employer and economic engine in these areas.
Rural hospitals traditionally serve older, low-income populations. This unique patient demographic in rural regions often lends to a dichotomy: a high volume of Medicare-dependent patients, but a lower volume of total patients overall.
FAH is committed to the permanent extension of the Low-Volume Hospital Payment Adjustment (LVH) and Medicare Dependent Hospital Program (MDH) that are essential for rural hospitals to continue to serve their communities. FAH is working diligently to ensure funding for these programs, which are set to expire in September 2022.
In addition, FAH works on a number of policy initiatives to support rural hospitals, including addressing workforce shortages and expanding access to broadband and telehealth in rural and underserved communities.