Hospital Closures, Cuts Mean Fewer Options for Rural Patients

The renewed Covid-19 outbreak and the aftershocks from the first wave of infections are forcing hospitals to make tough financial decisions as they prepare to absorb roughly $120 billion in losses through the second half of 2020.

Hospitals are resuming elective procedures that were halted during the early months of the pandemic and are slowly rebuilding lost patient volume and revenue. But they still face an uncertain future as ripple effects from the outbreak continue to force closures, job cuts, and service cutbacks.

Those financial decisions threaten to reduce competition and patients’ access to care—especially in rural areas, where hospitals ...