How will ‘Big Beautiful Bill Act’ affect Mississippi’s rural hospitals?

Date:2025-08-15 12:31:29 Category:US Views:2 Comment:0

HOLMES COUNTY, Miss. (WJTV) – State Senator Bradford Blackmon (D-District 21) held a luncheon and forum in his district on Thursday in order for residents to hear about changes in state and federal law.

One change at the federal level comes from the House Reconciliation Bill. Lawmakers passed the “Big Beautiful Bill Act” last month, which gives hospitals limited-time money.

Mississippi Hospital Association General Counsel Leah Smith said one way hospitals are funded is through a provider tax and state-directed payments. Those state-directed payments are federal dollars. Smith said Mississippi hospitals are taxed to the tune of $450 million to meet the state match requirements.

In exchange for paying that tax, Mississippi hospitals receive about $1.5 billion from the federal government, which helps hospitals with uncompensated care.

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“I’ve been looking at the impact of hospitals across the state, and rural hospitals alone, the 73 rural hospitals that are that are either state or federally classified, last year underwent about $236 million in uncompensated care,” said Smith.

She said states can apply for rural health transformation funding in the bill. The Mississippi Division of Medicaid has a summary of the program on their website. The funding starts in 2026 and basically establishes a $50 billion grant program. It will send payments to the 50 states through the program. Smith said Mississippi will get a portion of this money, but the funds will go away in 2030.

“It’s a $50 billion fund. Twenty-five billion will go in equal installments to every state, which is good for Mississippi, because, you know, we’re much smaller in population than, say, California. So if we get an equal amount to California, then we’re really getting more money, right? So, that’s about $100 million a year for the next five years. The other tranche, the other 25 billion will be decided by the CMS administrator according to our plan. So, the state has to submit a plan for rural health care by December 31, and then the CMS administrator will decide how those funds are spent,” she explained.

Smith said hospitals, particularly rural hospitals, could be faces with thin margins and be in the same position they were two years ago, which was struggling to keep the doors open.

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