As a member of the Rural Health Care Coalition in the U.S. House of Representatives, this week I joined in the introduction of the Health Care Access and Rural Equity (H-CARE) Act of 2006. This comprehensive legislation would help stabilize our nation’s rural health care infrastructure and correct deficiencies that jeopardize vulnerable rural health care systems nationwide.

Many rural Arkansans face a number of factors that create unfortunate health care disparities not found in urban areas. These include traveling several hours to the nearest health care facility, dealing with the ever-growing shortage of practitioners and often inadequate reimbursement rates to rural hospitals. This bill would work to remove these barriers and would help strengthen health care in rural areas.

Some key provisions of H-CARE include: authorizing a loan program to rural hospitals for capital improvement projects; increasing payments to rural hospitals who take on the burden of a disproportionate share of Medicare and Medicaid patients; and authorizing health information technology grants for rural practitioners including physicians practicing in physician scarcity areas, rural ambulance providers, rural home health agencies and rural hospitals.

I live in Prescott, where our local hospital closed in 1995, something I would not wish on any community. That is why I am proud to cosponsor this important legislation to help improve 21 rural hospitals in Arkansas’ Fourth Congressional District. As your Congressman, this is one of my top priorities in Washington, D.C. While this legislation is one of many common sense steps we should take, be assured that I will continue to fight for all legislation to ensure everyone has access to quality health care, no matter where they live.