KY House Passes Bill to Boost Rural Hospitals

The Kentucky House voted Friday to create a loan program to provide struggling rural hospitals with cash transfusions lawmakers hope will spark a financial turnaround.

Hospitals in counties with fewer than 50,000 people would be eligible for the loans.

More than 60 hospitals qualify under that definition, and more than a dozen are considered “vulnerable to closure,” said Republican Rep. Danny Bentley, the bill’s lead sponsor.

The bill cleared the House on an 80-0 vote and now goes to the Senate. Its cosponsors include House Speaker David Osborne, who said funding for the loan program could come from the issuance of bonds.

Source: MG News

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