State of the rural healthcare industry 2025 research report

Rural healthcare organizations plan to tackle cybersecurity, invest in digital and AI

Rural hospitals and clinics are no longer in COVID-19 crisis mode, and the labor shortage is easing. Leaders are feeling optimistic about the future. However, a new alarm bell is sounding: cyberattacks. Wipfli surveyed C-level executives at rural healthcare organizations across the United States to inform our third annual “State of rural healthcare” report. In this year’s research, cybersecurity rose to the top of leaders’ concerns, while ongoing worries about service reimbursements mounted in intensity. Leaders also indicated a growing interest in digital and AI tools.

Of the rural healthcare executives we surveyed, we learned:

• 96% are optimistic about their organization’s financial viability.
• 78% said they are “not likely at all” to merge with another organization.
• 41% said financial concerns/reimbursements are a significant challenge.
• 65% said cybersecurity is a top concern — up from ~50% in prior years.
• 81% have increased their investment in cybersecurity technologies in the past 12 months.
• 32% are using AI tools.

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