'We'll never know if he could have been saved.' The gaps in Trump's rural health fund

Healthcare 'We'll never know if he could have been saved.' The gaps in Trump's rural health fund May 22, 20265:00 AM ET From By  Sarah Jane Tribble ,  Amanda Seitz Debra Pierce holds up a picture of Stanley Sears, her brother, while standing in the yard of the mobile home he was renovating before his death in 2024. Pierce believes North Carolina's Martin County needs higher-level emergency services and a hospital. Sarah Jane Tribble/KFF Health News hide caption toggle caption Sarah Jane Tribble/KFF Health News WILLIAMSTON, N.C. — Two years after her brother's death, Debra Pierce still wonders whether the 50-year-old would have survived his heart attack if her local hospital hadn't closed. "The sad thing is we'll never know if he could have been saved that night or not, because we don't have a higher level of care in this county," Pierce said as she stood outside the mobile home where she last hugged her brother. Health Dr. Oz pushes AI avatars as a fix for rural health care. Not so fast, critics say Emergency crews from a neighboring town worked on Stanley Sears for a half hour but couldn't revive him for the long drive to the closest hospital, records show. In the tall grass — which would be mowed if Sears were still alive — Pierce swiped through the photos on her phone. She stopped at a picture that showed Sears smiling. Pierce chuckled and then sighed: "Bless him." Stanley Sears and sister Debra Pierce at a Walmart. Sears died after a heart attack in North Carolina's Martin County the year after the 2023 closure of Martin General Hospital. (Stanley Sears) Stanley Sears hide caption toggle caption Stanley Sears Closed for years The local hospital had closed a year before Sears' death, leaving behind a gutted healthcare system. Martin County does not have paramedics on its ambulances, and it can be 20 miles or more to the closest — and often overcrowded — emergency rooms. Sponsor Message Shots - Health News A mobile clinic parked at a Dollar General? It s...