By Alan Condon of Becker Hosptial Review

Tennessee's Jellico Regional Hospital, a 25-bed critical access facility, closed March 9, making it the 36th rural hospital to shutter or no longer provide inpatient services since 2020, according to data compiled by the University of North Carolina's Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research. 

The closures highlight the heightened financial challenges that rural hospitals face amid persisting workforce shortages, rising costs and leveling reimbursement. In addition, only 45% of rural hospitals now offer labor and delivery services, and in 10 states, less than 33% do, according to the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform.

Below are the 36 rural hospitals that closed since 2020, beginning with the most recent.

Editor's note: Facilities with an asterisk (*) signify converted closures (facilities that no longer provide inpatient services, but continue to provide some services, such as primary care, skilled nursing care or long-term care).