A recent analysis by the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform has highlighted a worrying trend: around 800 rural hospitals across the United States are at potential risk of closing due to financial difficulties. These institutions form the backbone of rural healthcare infrastructure, and their closure could significantly impact healthcare access in these areas. The analysis is based on hospital-reported data and financial reserves that were current up until June 2025.
Interestingly, this threat of closure spans across two distinct tiers of vulnerability. The first tier involves hospitals that may sustain their losses from patient services based on their financial reserves for up to six to seven years. In nearly every U.S. state, such hospitals exist that are financially at risk. In over half of the states, 25% or more of rural hospitals are facing the risk of closure, with 11 states having a majority of their rural hospitals under this threat.
On the other hand, the second tier encompasses hospitals with financial reserves that could compensate for patient service losses for two to three years at the most. According to this most recent analysis, there are currently 314 rural hospitals in the U.S. that fall under this category. These hospitals are at an ‘immediate risk’ and their closure could be imminent owing to severe financial strain.
This article includes a detailed state-by-state breakdown of the number of rural hospitals at risk. This list pinpoints both hospitals at risk of closure over the next six to seven years and those facing immediate threats over the next two to three years. For example, Alabama has 28 hospitals at risk of closing (60% of its total number), with 23 of these at immediate risk of closure within the next 2-3 years (45% of total). Subsequently, the breakdown continues with the status of every U.S. state’s rural hospital vulnerability.
This in-depth analysis not only provides a broad and comprehensive understanding of the financial state of rural hospitals but also indicates the urgent need for actionable solutions to prevent such widespread closure. It is especially alarming to note that the closure trend spans hospitals from almost every U.S. state, signaling a universal issue rather than isolated regional problems.
Source: https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/finance/760-hospitals-at-risk-of-closure-state-by-state/