Save Small-Town Texas From Losing Its Last Hospital
Save Small-Town Texas From Losing Its Last Hospital
The Issue
Across Texas, rural hospitals are shutting their doors — and when the last hospital in a small town closes, it’s not just an inconvenience. It’s the difference between life and death.
Since 2005, Texas has lost 24 rural hospitals — more than any other state. Nearly 28% of our counties now have no hospital at all, and over a quarter of the remaining rural hospitals are at risk of closing. When that happens, emergency rooms vanish, maternity care disappears, and heart attack or stroke victims face long, dangerous drives to the nearest facility.
The collapse is fueled by a severe doctor shortage. By 2032, Texas is projected to be short more than 10,000 physicians. In some rural areas, there isn’t a single primary care doctor — forcing patients to delay or skip care altogether.
This September, Texas will launch the Doctor Act, a bipartisan law allowing experienced foreign-trained physicians to practice here without repeating years of U.S. residency. These are doctors who have already served in hospitals abroad and can be placed quickly in communities where care is disappearing.
Some have voiced concerns about whether this could lower standards or threaten patient safety. Those concerns are valid — and they can be addressed. Every doctor, regardless of where they trained, must still meet rigorous licensing checks. The Doctor Act keeps those safeguards in place while removing unnecessary barriers that keep qualified physicians from serving patients in crisis.
We cannot afford to let misinformation or fear slow this effort. Without swift action to expand and fully implement the Doctor Act, more small-town hospitals will close. That means more lives lost because there was no doctor close enough to save them.
Texas leaders must act now to ensure the law’s rollout is fully funded, that physicians are placed where the need is most urgent, and that high safety standards are upheld for every provider. Rural Texans — the people who grow our food, build our communities, and serve in our military — deserve access to a hospital in their own town.
Sign if you agree Texas must save small-town hospitals now by using every qualified doctor ready to help.
53
The Issue
Across Texas, rural hospitals are shutting their doors — and when the last hospital in a small town closes, it’s not just an inconvenience. It’s the difference between life and death.
Since 2005, Texas has lost 24 rural hospitals — more than any other state. Nearly 28% of our counties now have no hospital at all, and over a quarter of the remaining rural hospitals are at risk of closing. When that happens, emergency rooms vanish, maternity care disappears, and heart attack or stroke victims face long, dangerous drives to the nearest facility.
The collapse is fueled by a severe doctor shortage. By 2032, Texas is projected to be short more than 10,000 physicians. In some rural areas, there isn’t a single primary care doctor — forcing patients to delay or skip care altogether.
This September, Texas will launch the Doctor Act, a bipartisan law allowing experienced foreign-trained physicians to practice here without repeating years of U.S. residency. These are doctors who have already served in hospitals abroad and can be placed quickly in communities where care is disappearing.
Some have voiced concerns about whether this could lower standards or threaten patient safety. Those concerns are valid — and they can be addressed. Every doctor, regardless of where they trained, must still meet rigorous licensing checks. The Doctor Act keeps those safeguards in place while removing unnecessary barriers that keep qualified physicians from serving patients in crisis.
We cannot afford to let misinformation or fear slow this effort. Without swift action to expand and fully implement the Doctor Act, more small-town hospitals will close. That means more lives lost because there was no doctor close enough to save them.
Texas leaders must act now to ensure the law’s rollout is fully funded, that physicians are placed where the need is most urgent, and that high safety standards are upheld for every provider. Rural Texans — the people who grow our food, build our communities, and serve in our military — deserve access to a hospital in their own town.
Sign if you agree Texas must save small-town hospitals now by using every qualified doctor ready to help.
53
Petition created on August 14, 2025