Diminishing Rural Health Care And What’s Happening In Coal States, This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, nearly 150 rural hospitals in the U.S. since 2010 have shut down – all victims to the financial stresses facing the country’s health care. Residents in West Virginia’s Mingo County have watched as some of their health care options vanished.

On the latest episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay looks at the challenges facing rural childbirth and obstetric care. About 10 percent of rural hospitals have stopped offering delivery care forcing many families to make tough decisions.

Also, in this show, West Virginia lawmakers have been trying to save the Pleasants Power Station in Pleasants County. A few other coal-producing states are working to protect power plants that burn coal. But they’re going against a national trend away from coal that has only accelerated in recent years.

Curtis Tate spoke with Seth Feaster, an energy analyst with the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, about what’s happening in coal states and nationwide.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from West Virginia University, Concord University, and Shepherd University.

Assistant News Director Caroline MacGregor produced this episode.

Listen to West Virginia Morning weekdays at 7:43 a.m. on WVPB Radio or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. #WVMorning