Rural emergency-room visits jumped 70% in 12 years, suggesting rural hospitals are increasingly safety nets

Visits to rural hospital emergency departments have increased more than 70 percent from 2005 to 2017, according to a study at the University of New Mexico Albuquerque and the University of Michigan. Researchers said the study showed the hospitals' increased importance as safety nets.

"Increased visits by young to middle-aged white rural patients—particularly Medicaid beneficiaries and those without insurance—may indicate an increased burden of illness or challenges in access to alternative care sites,” the authors write. The jump in Medicaid-funded visits is likely because most states expanded Medicaid under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The authors also found an increase in the proportion of rural hospitals classified as safety-net hospitals, which by law must serve patients regardless of their financial status. If these trends continue, rural hospitals could face worsening financial troubles, the authors write.

Rural emergency-room visits increased to 28.4 million from 16.7 million. Urban visits increased to 117.2 million from 98.6 million, a rose of 19 percent. Applying population data, that's a jump from 36.5 to 64.5 ER visits for every 100 rural people, and an increase from 40.2 to 42.8 for every 100 urban people, the study says.

Data for the study came from the national Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. Rurality was defined using Office of Management and Budget classification.