Category: Rural Headlines

EXCERPT: “In the past five years, over 100 rural hospitals have stopped delivering babies, contributing to the 57% of rural U.S. hospitals that lack labor and delivery services. This finding comes from the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform. Its July report details the number of rural hospitals by state that lack maternity care services, those ...

EXCERPT: “The U.S. Postal Service is planning to make changes that could result in slower service to rural areas. The proposal, announced Aug. 22, would adjust mail delivery times while maintaining a commitment to a maximum five-day delivery for the flagship Ground Advantage program nationwide and a maximum three-day delivery for local first-class mail. USPS said the ...

EXCERPT: “Paulette Johnson described her brother John’s move from one nursing home to another as ‘traumatic.’ John Johnson had lived in the Meadow Lane Restorative Care Center in Benson for about five years before he had to leave when the center announced its closure last summer. Since the COVID pandemic, nursing homes across Minnesota have been closing ...

EXCERPT: “The U.S. Department of Agriculture is giving grants to 86 projects in Greater Minnesota that will increase access to clean energy and increase the production of biofuels, according to a press release. A combined $26.8 million be disbursed through two programs — $9.2 million from the Rural Energy for America Program, or REAP, and $17.5 ...

EXCERPT: “Ever since Mary Hartman started her small business in Kasson 15 miles west of Rochester, she has felt a severe disparity in the availability of grants and mentorship opportunities that are needed to be successful. ‘That continues to be a problem in the rural sector,’ she said. Hartman got some needed help when she connected ...

EXCERPT: “Amazon.com is reaching into the remote corners of America to deliver its packages quicker to customers in rural areas, a push that represents its last frontier of ultrafast delivery in the U.S. The retail giant is expanding its one- to two-day delivery capabilities throughout the country as it seeks to boost sales in less-populated ...

EXCERPT: “Parts of Greater Minnesota are continuing to see their available housing stock grow older and older without much new product coming online, according to a new report from the Minnesota Housing Partnership. Three regions in Greater Minnesota, the northland, southwest and southern, all have a housing stock where over 40% of both rentals and for-sale ...

EXCERPT: “On the surface, it looked like any other school fundraiser. The kids at Challenger Elementary in Thief River Falls were selling coffee cups, writing thank-you notes, and partnering with local businesses to drum up interest in their cause. But these kids weren’t fundraising for a class trip, a sports team, or any other extracurricular activity. ...

EXCERPT: “As rivers crest in the coming days, some parts of the state are still bracing for flooding, while others are already cleaning up. From Waterville to Cook, parts of the state are dealing with devastating floods and residents are looking for relief. The Salvation Army and American Red Cross are working together to help flood victims.” FULL STORY: ...