HENDERSON, Ky. (WEHT) – An official with Deaconess says there are no plans to close Deaconess Henderson Hospital, Deaconess Union County Hospital or Baptist Health Deaconess Madisonville following a report from the National Rural Health Association suggesting the Henderson hospital could face major reductions due to possible cuts to medicaid.
The report says that rural hospitals like Deaconess or Daviess Community Hospital in Washington rely on Medicaid so much that they may have to scale back services or close. The report said overall, 35 rural hospitals are at risk in Kentucky, as well as 12 in Indiana and nine in Illinois.
Officials with Deaconess reached out to Eyewitness News on Monday to say that there no plans to close their Kentucky hospitals, and they remain committed to serving the health care needs of families in the region. In a statement, officials with the hospital system said they agreed that proposed reductions in health care funding could have serious long-term consequences for hospitals, but say those conversations are about future policy discussions, not current operational status…