Our weekly program, Making Democracy Work, is a collaboration between KSMU Radio and the League of Women Voters of Southwest Missouri. It's hosted and produced by volunteers from the LWV, and it airs each Monday morning at 9:45 a.m. on KSMU.
In this episode of our local program Making Democracy Work, host Maggie Castrey speaks with David Dillion, vice president of public and media relations with the Missouri Hospital Association.
Dillion says that 10 percent or 12 of 120 hospitals have closed over the past decade. He talks about the difficulties this creates for residents in those communities and particularly those seeking prenatal or maternity care. Dillion says that finances are the driving force of hospital closures, with the biggest expense being labor costs.