Rural hospitals across the country are closing at an alarming rate - over 80 since 2010. And a majority of these are located in the South.
One WFDD listener asked: why are so many small town hospitals being forced to close?
To answer that question, in the latest installment of our series Carolina Curious, WFDD's Bethany Chafin speaks with Dr. George Pink of the North Carolina Rural Health Research Program. He outlines what happens before and after a rural hospital leaves a community.
Three broad categories of factors that are explaining rural hospital closures:
1. The market: small, declining populations; high unemployment rates; increasing numbers of uninsured and underinsured patients; and competition.
2. Ho