hospitals

In rural Medicine Lodge, Kansas, Sarrah and Kyle Miller were sued last month by their local medical clinic for $230 in unpaid medical expenses. Their story is part of a new pattern. Kansas hospitals have filed thousands of lawsuits against their rural patients in recent years, including many for less than $500.

There have been thousands of lawsuits by Kansas hospitals in recent years, including many lawsuits for less than $500. One lawsuit was for just $104.

Missouri leaders applied Wednesday to the $50 billion federal grant initiative, which Congress included in the spending package known as "One Big Beautiful Bill." Other cuts in the bill are expected to devastate struggling rural health systems.

Nurse practitioners and midwives have been pushing to get the law changed in Missouri, but haven’t made any progress. Now, one Columbia nurse is suing the state.

Kansas tiene más hospitales rurales con riesgo de cerrar que cualquier otro estado, y los cambios federales podrían reducir aún más los ingresos. Sin embargo, un cambio en los impuestos estatales dariá a los hospitales un respiro de unos años para implementar estrategias a largo plazo.

Kansas has more rural hospitals at risk of closure than any other state, and federal changes could further reduce revenue. However, a change to a state tax will give a few years' cushion for hospitals to implement long-term strategies.

22-year-old Larry Black, Jr. arrived at a St. Louis hospital after getting shot in the head. A week later, he was taken to surgery to have his organs removed for donation — even though his heart was beating and his family had doubts. Today, Black is alive and haunted by what almost happened.

About 90,000 people spent months in limbo as central Missouri's major medical provider fought over insurance contracts. These disputes between insurers and hospitals are a recurring problem.

Boone County residents questioned Republican Rep. Mark Alford about his vote for Medicaid cuts in the "Big Beautiful Bill," Trump's deployment of the National Guard, and other GOP priorities.

Health care leaders worry rural hospitals could be hit hard by Medicaid spending reductions in the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act." In the Midwest and Great Plains, Oklahoma and Kansas could face the highest risk of hospital closures and service reductions.

The new federal law is expected to eliminate $1 trillion in federal spending on Medicaid over the next decade. University Health in Kansas City, which counts on Medicaid for more than half of its patient revenue, expects a huge financial hit but vows that cutting services and staff will be the last resort.

President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” cuts about $1 trillion in federal Medicaid funding. Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley helped push for the inclusion of money for rural hospitals, but experts say it's just "a drop in the bucket" — and could force even more providers to close.