LINCOLN- The Nebraska Hospital Association (NHA) and the Nebraska Rural Health Association (NeRHA) unveiled the 2025-26 Roadmap to Strong Rural Health Care to help improve rural healthcare in the state on Tuesday. NHA President Jeremy Nordquist says Nebraska hospitals currently struggle with lagging reimbursement rates, higher labor costs, and aggressive practices from large insurance companies and big pharma.

According to a recent survey of NHA’s membership, many of Nebraska’s rural hospitals operated at a loss in the last quarter. The average operating margin for 2024 was 1.4%, well below a sustainable margin. “These tough financial conditions have forced over 20% of our hospitals to reduce or eliminate services in the last the years,” Nordquist said.

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