ARKANSAS, USA — The last few years haven't been easy for Arkansas hospitals.
"You have inflation, and you have increased costs of labor, drug prices, and other things like that," Arkansas Hospital Association Executive Vice President Jodiane Tritt said.
Tritt said many rural hospitals have had to make difficult decisions to keep their doors open.
"I can keep offering this service as if one of my sister institutions can offer this one close by," Trit said. "What we're running into at this point is we've done that for so long, there's nothing else to take from... That's why you're seeing labor and delivery, for example, have to shut or close its doors."
The association has been working non-stop to find extra funding for all hospitals, especially those rural ones, and now funding is on the way thanks to last year's American Rescue Plan funds.
"The amount of money that the steering committee at that time, which was a legislative steering committee, could allow for hospital funds was about $60 million," Tritt said.
Four rural hospitals will benefit from the funds if approved by a legislative council on Friday.
One of those is the Eureka Springs Hospital.
"Since the 1990s, we were a critical access hospital,' Eureka Springs Hospital CEO Angie Shaw. "We were one of the first critical access hospitals in Carroll County, and probably northwest Arkansas at the time."
Shaw said it's vital so they can keep caring for patients.
"It'll open up some availability for us to do some upgrades, get much-needed equipment in our ER, and bring in potential outpatient services," Shaw said.
Tritt hopes that even more hospitals could also get some extra help soon.
"We've got to keep them open," Tritt said. "We've got to keep them sustainable, and we have to keep them having the service lines that those community members need."
The other hospitals looking to get funding approved tomorrow are the Magnolia Regional Medical Center, Delta Health System and the Piggott Community Hospital.