EXCLUSIVE: Hawley pushes new legislation to save rural emergency rooms from ‘breakneck’closures

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Sen.Josh Hawley, R-Mo., on Wednesday introduced new legislation aimed at combating America’s“Americans in rural communities across the country are confronted with a concerning shortage of access to emergency medical care,” Hawley said.“InMissourialone, 12 rural hospitals with emergency rooms have closed in as many years, and those that remain open are struggling to keep the lights on.

“Congress must act swiftly to protect the necessary emergency care hardworking rural families deserve.”

Hawley’s comments come as he pushes the Rural Hospital Emergency Room Guarantee Act, legislation aimed at saving rural hospitals from closing at a “breakneck pace.”

Sen. Josh Hawley walking to a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing in the Dirksen building

FILE – Sen.Josh Hawley, R-Mo., debuted the Rural Hospital Emergency Room Guarantee Act on Wednesday.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc)

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Since 2005, nearly 200rural hospitals have shut downnationwide, a trend that is creating “widespread emergency-room deserts” and forcing some residents to drive an hour or more just to reach lifesaving emergency care, according to the senator’s office.

The situation is particularly dire in Hawley’s home state of Missouri, where 12 rural hospitals with emergency rooms have closed since 2014. 

Records show that nearly half of all rural hospitals in Missouri currently operate at a loss, with 10 hospitals, or roughly 20%, at “immediate risk of closure.”

Sen. Josh Hawley speaking during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing

FILE – Sen.Hawley’s office confirmed 12 rural hospitals with emergency rooms have closed since 2014. (Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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To keep the lights on and emergency room doors open, the proposed legislation would establish a mandatory, 10-year dedicated funding stream administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration, according to the senator’s office.

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If the bill were to pass, eligible rural hospitals would receive a guaranteed baseline distribution of $1 million per year to cover normal emergency room operating expenses, which would be distributed on a quarterly basis and indexed forinflation, along with additional funding depending on a hospital’s specific geographical, financial and patient-injury characteristics.

Sen. Josh Hawley speaking to reporters in the Senate subway at the U.S. Capitol

FILE – Hawley’s bill would allow participating rural hospitals facing an immediate risk of closure to receive a one-time emergency payment of up to $250,000.(Reuters/Elizabeth Frantz)

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Participating rural hospitals facing an immediate risk of closure would also receive a one-time emergency payment of up to $250,000.

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The senator’s office noted affected hospitals receiving the new guaranteed funding will not face negative impacts on their eligibility for any other federal healthcare programs, designations or grants.

Hawley is expected to announce the Rural Hospital Emergency Room Guarantee Act at a news conference scheduled for 3 p.m.ET Wednesday.

This is a developing story.Please check back for updates.

She has covered major national crises, including the L.A.wildfires, Potomac and Hudson River aviation disasters, Boulder terror attack, and Texas Hill Country floods.

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