Rural Dispatch: Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026
Drive for Nuclear Power Boosts Uranium Industry — And Tribal Health Concerns in Southwest
By Melissa Bailey
Federal efforts to revive uranium mining in the West and decrease reliance on Russian uranium are raising concerns about drinking water for tribal communities reckoning with the industry’s deadly legacy.
People With Disabilities Say Medicaid’s Limits on Income Stifle Career Advancement
By Natalie Krebs, Iowa Public Radio
Special Medicaid programs in many states allow disabled people to work while receiving benefits, and most limit how much participants can earn and the assets they can hold. Some Iowans are pushing lawmakers to remove those limits, which they say can dampen their career prospects.
Same Knee Surgery, Twice the Price: Hospital Monopolies Push Up Healthcare Costs
By Peter Whoriskey
A federal disclosure rule is offering new insight on the effect of healthcare monopolies on pricing, following a wave of U.S. mergers.
The Newest Federally Recognized Tribe Wants Better Healthcare. It May Be On Its Own.
By Andrew Jones
North Carolina's Robeson County, where most of the tribe’s citizens live, ranks as one of the worst counties in the U.S. for health disparities. After securing federal recognition, Lumbee tribal leaders will have to decide how to address them.
Trump Has Quietly Throttled an Agency Devoted to the Safety of American Healthcare
By Arthur Allen
Congress appropriated $345 million for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality for the 2026 fiscal year, but the agency has spent less than $15 million on grants. AHRQ hasn’t issued a new one in over a year.
Earlier Lifeline for Rural Hospitals Faces Test Under ‘Big Beautiful’ Law
By Sarah Jane Tribble and Tony Leys
A century-old rural Michigan hospital converted to a stripped-down model Congress created to help keep small facilities afloat, then it closed. The emergency hospital model, created a few years ago, is stabilizing some hospitals, arrived too late for others, and now faces major challenges under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Medicaid Work Rule Leaves Homeless People in the Cold
By Katheryn Houghton
Conservatives who have long pushed for Medicaid work requirements often said vulnerable people would get a pass. But the federal government’s list of exemptions left off homeless people.
Hospitals Say They Found a Tool To Help Reduce Childbirth Risks: Wristbands
By Andrew Jones
North Carolina and other states have embraced “I Gave Birth” wristbands as a way to encourage women to seek help when they have postpartum complications. They’re gaining steam as the Trump administration’s cuts to Medicaid threaten postpartum care.