Rural Dispatch: March 31, 2026
Give and Take: Federal Rural Health Funding Could Trigger Service Cuts
Aaron Bolton, MTPR and Arielle Zionts
States are rolling out plans for their share of a $50 billion fund meant to improve rural health care. In some states, the money may provoke rural hospitals to cut services.
Rising Health Costs Push Some Middle-Aged Adults To Skip the Doc Until Medicare
Sam Whitehead
Adults ages 50 through 64 faced some of the steepest increases in out-of-pocket costs for Obamacare plans after a set of federal subsidies expired at the end of December. Some say they are putting off care or considering dropping health insurance coverage until Medicare picks up the bill.
Lawmakers Seek To Protect Crisis Pregnancy Centers as Abortion Clinic Numbers Shrink
Jazmin Orozco Rodriguez
Some states have tried to crack down on crisis pregnancy centers, accusing them of deceptive practices. But now conservative lawmakers are pushing legislation to increase protections for the organizations, which work to dissuade women from abortions.
Primary Care Is in Trouble. So Doctors Band Together To Boost Their Market Power.
Karen Brown, New England Public Media
Thousands of primary care practices are fighting to remain financially viable and independent. Many are banding together to form Independent Physician Associations, or IPAs, to increase their market power.
More Kids Are in ERs for Tooth Pain. Trump Cuts and RFK Jr.’s Anti-Fluoride Fight Aren’t Helping.
Farrell Brenner and Angela Y. Zhang
Dentists, hygienists, and researchers say a shortage of rural dental care professionals and worsening oral hygiene since the covid-19 pandemic mean more kids are ending up in the emergency room for tooth decay.
Trump’s Cuts to Medicaid Threaten Services That Help Disabled People Live at Home
Tony Leys
Iowa patient advocates say that in the face of federal Medicaid cuts, the state is quietly reducing in-home services that help people avoid being institutionalized. National groups are bracing for similar cuts elsewhere.
Despite Their Successes, Some Mobile Crisis Response Teams Are in Crisis
Aaron Bolton, MTPR
Mobile crisis units are trained to respond to emergency calls when people are experiencing delusions or hallucinations. But unlike police departments, which are generally funded by local taxpayers, mobile crisis teams don’t have a single, reliable funding source. As a result, some are closing down, despite successful operations and local support.
Lawmakers, Health Groups Resist Their States’ Rural Health Fund Plans
Arielle Zionts and Sarah Jane Tribble
Some Republican state lawmakers and state health associations are pushing back against spending plans under the Trump administration’s $50 billion federal rural health fund. Federal administrators already approved states’ plans, but in many cases, state lawmakers must greenlight spending.
Journalists Explain a Spat Over Sugary Coffee and How Measles Fools Doctors
KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national and local media recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.