As hospitals continue to struggle with the sustained high costs of labor and supplies, they are also burdened with having to pay back increased debt from the advances, especially in rural areas.
Some hospitals were unprepared for the length of time it would take for the economy to recover and may have spent such advances prematurely, Ge Bai, PhD, health policy professor at Johns Hopkins University, told Roll Call.
Only a fraction of the money remains outstanding, approximately $404 million or 0.37 percent of the total figure, according to the report.
But rural hospitals in particular are faced with the prospect of selling off assets, losing their independence or even closing as the debt remains unpaid.
Greenwood (Miss.) Leflore Hospital, for example, which is threatened with closure, still owes $4.7 million of its $16.5 million advance and plans to pay off the debt by September 2027, the report said.
