LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) — Nebraska Sen. Pete Ricketts toured Beatrice Community Hospital & Health Center Wednesday afternoon, getting a sense of what challenges rural hospitals are facing as money from legislation passed earlier in the year becomes available.

The Rural Health Transformation Program earmarked $50 billion from the One Big Beautiful Bill to ensure continued workforce development and sustainability for rural health care.

Workforce retention, reimbursement for telehealth and improvements to Medicare Advantage were among the big issues rural hospital staff discussed during Senator Ricketts’ tour, he said.

“One of the important things that if we want to get people to stay in our small towns and rural communities, you’ve got to have a great quality of life,” Ricketts said. “And

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