Responding to a legislative request, the Government Accountability Office has
reviewed literature on the loss of rural obstetrics services, interviewed
stakeholders, and formulated a set of recommendations to stem losses in care that
disproportionately affect infants and birthing parents of color. The report finds that
the closure of rural hospitals that offered obstetric services are disproportionately
in sparesly populated places with lower incomes and greater populations of color.
Remaining providers are more often family providers rather than obstetric
specialists. The report recommends increasing Medicaid reimbursement rates,
supporting greater use of telehealth, and creating regional “hub and spoke” models
as ways to address the loss of rural services.
