Sustaining Rural Healthcare Act

This bill changes Medicare rules for rural hospitals. It lets a hospital that a state has designated as a critical access hospital keep that status for up to 3 years after it stops meeting one eligibility criterion, if the Secretary of Health and Human Services finds that losing the status would reduce access to care in its area. It also allows the Secretary to label certain struggling rural hospitals as "Critical Access in Character," which would let them be paid Medicare rates equal to critical access hospitals for up to 3 years, with possible renewal. The Secretary would have to issue guidance within 12 months and work with the Department of Agriculture to offer free technical help to these hospitals.

Full text and official record on Congress.gov

Sponsors

• Mark Alford Republican sponsor
• 3 cosponsors