Physician Led and Rural Access to Quality Care Act

This bill changes Medicare rules to make it easier for physician-owned hospitals to operate and grow, especially in rural areas. It creates a new category called “covered rural hospital,” which must be in a rural area and at least a 35‑mile drive from another hospital or critical access hospital (or 15 miles in mountains or where only secondary roads exist). It also ends a past rule that blocked existing physician‑owned hospitals from expanding, starting on the date the new rule takes effect.

In plain terms, more physician-led hospitals could open or expand in places that don’t have nearby hospital options, which could mean shorter trips for care and potentially faster service for local patients.

• Who is affected: Patients in rural communities; physician‑owned hospitals; nearby health systems.
• What changes: Defines “covered rural hospital” using distance rules; lifts the ban on expansion for existing physician‑owned hospitals.
• When: The expansion ban ends starting on the date the new law is enacted.