Coronavirus in rural America (Part CLXII): U.S. Health and Human Services responds to rural strain

A New York Times story by Mark Walker from a few days ago suggests that the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services is responding to the particular stresses the rural health care system has faced during the pandemic.  Here's an excerpt that uses the word "rural" perhaps a record number of times compared to NY Times norms.  (In what follows, emphasis is mine).

Xavier Becerra, the health and human services secretary, said that Covid-19 made clear the importance of having timely access to quality medical care, especially in rural America.

“When it comes to a rural provider there are a number of costs that are incurred, that sometimes are different from what you see with urban providers or suburban providers,” Mr. Becerra said in an interview. “And oftentimes, they’re unique only to rural providers.”

Wow. Now there is a rare concession of rural difference--even uniqueness.  The story continues:  

Rural physicians serve a disproportionate number of patients covered by Medicaid, Medicare or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, who often have more complex medical needs. Many rural hospitals were already struggling before the pandemic, and 21 have closed since the beginning of 2020, according to data from the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at the University of North Carolina.

Under the program, every eligible provider that serves at least one Medicare, Medicaid or CHIP beneficiary in a rural part of the country will receive at least $500. Payments will range up to $43 million, with an average payment of $170,700. They are based on how many claims a provider submitted for rural patients covered by these programs from January 2019 through September 2020.

Rural America is home to some of the country’s oldest and sickest patients, many of whom were affected by the pandemic.

The new funding is supposed to help rural hospitals stay open in the long run and improve the care they provide, building on efforts the Biden administration has already made to help improve access to health care in rural communities, which it considers crucial to its goal of addressing inequities in access to care.