Republicans Don't Give a Shit About Rural Tennesseans

Wipe the propaganda from your eyes and face the facts

It couldn’t be clearer: Republicans don’t give a shit about rural families. It was bad already; now it’s going to get even worse. More than 75% of Tennessee’s population resides in rural communities, yet roughly half of these rural hospitals provide obstetric care. One-third of the state’s counties are maternal healthcare deserts, meaning they offer limited or no obstetric services. It’s devastating and repetitive to say that this means more women, birthing people, and children will suffer and die.

They already are.

Tennessee ranks highest in the United States in maternal mortality rates, and we have one of the highest rates of pre-term birth. Now, 300,000 Tennesseans will lose health insurance, and nine rural hospitals are at risk of closure thanks to the Medicaid cuts in President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” This is beyond devastating.

Roughly one-half of all hospitals in the state do not provide obstetric care, and one-quarter of women and birthing people already have to travel more than 30 minutes one way for obstetric appointments. It’s not just inconvenient; it’s impossible.

Let’s say you work full-time or multiple part-time jobs to support your family, and let’s assume your pregnancy is perfectly healthy. If you make 10 trips to a doctor, which is on the lower side, you’d lose at least $1,000 in just travel-time-related wages. This number is based on 3.5 hours for “OOO” time and an hourly wage of $30.68.

An average monthly income for a family living in rural Tennessee is around $5,000/month. A conservative estimate for monthly costs is ~$3,500. In this hypothetical, based on average costs and generous time margins, a family would be left with ~$500/month. However, in these areas, the poverty rate can be as high as 25 percent. The average number paint a grim picture, but it’s still rosier than reality. While it’s hard to calculate exact numbers, it’s easy to see how the math isn’t mathing.

And this is before the additional reproductive-related healthcare costs:

• Extra travel costs — such as gas and overnights — if necessary for advanced testing, medical emergencies, or high-risk pregnancies,

• Finances needed to cover childcare and/or elderly family members,

• Time spent finding a ride, if public transportation isn’t available (it’s not),

• Asking employer/employers to give you (unpaid) time off to make the trips.

It’s impossible. And even if you can miraculously make that work, with nine hospital closures and a loss of Medicaid, a lifeline for rural Tennesseans, it’s a death sentence. The Republican politicians elected by these communities to take care of them are the same people destroying them. This is a horrible day for the majority of Tennesseans.