[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 194 (Tuesday, November 18, 2025)]
[House]
[Page H4763]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     NATIONAL RURAL HEALTHCARE WEEK

  (Mr. BISHOP asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BISHOP. Mr. Speaker, rural Georgians and rural Americans are 
older, sicker, and less likely to have health insurance than those in 
our cities. In fact, compared to urban areas, rural Georgians are 
nearly five times more likely to die early from cancer.
  However, access to care is collapsing. Over 20 percent of rural 
counties in Georgia have no doctor or only one doctor, and 200 counties 
across America have no doctor at all.
  When rural hospitals close, the community loses not only healthcare 
but jobs, restaurants, banks, and hope. When Southwest Georgia Regional 
Hospital closed, the nearest ER became 40 miles away, a life or death 
distance.
  Rural healthcare is not just about hospitals and doctors. Clean 
drinking water, wastewater upgrades, and broadband are necessary for 
health and survival. Rural areas simply don't have the tax base to 
modernize these systems alone, so Congress must invest funding in rural 
development, energy, and healthcare to ensure they can thrive.
  Mr. Speaker, rural health is not partisan. We must work together to 
make access to care a reality for rural Americans everywhere.

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