As Rural Hospital Shuts Its Doors, Public Health Experts Worry About Vulnerable Communities

A southwest Georgia hospital some 90 miles from the nearest Interstate is shutting down, despite a surge of coronavirus cases across rural America.

Officials with Southwest Georgia Regional Medical Center said in a statement that the coronavirus pandemic has only worsened financial difficulties the hospital has endured for years. The Cuthbert hospital is about an hour from Albany, and is set to close its doors in October.

Public health experts have stressed that these hospitals miles from major cities like Atlanta are especially critical for rural seniors, or poverty-stricken communities that don’t necessarily have reliable transportation. For some, it could just mean they will have to journey much further to get intensive care. For others, it will mean inadequate care, delays, and possibly no intensive care at all, according to Dr. Ashish Jha, professor of global health at Harvard University.