Rural Maine’s healthcare crisis cannot wait until November | Opinion

**Maxwell Murthi** _is a rising sophomore at Bates College and an ED technician at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center in Lewiston. He volunteers with the Maine Mobile Health Program, serving rural farmworker communities._ In 2025, [Belfast’s Waldo Hospital closed its maternity ward](https://wgme.com/news/i-team/making-a-maternity-desert-more-maine-hospitals-shut-down-delivery-wards). So did [Mount Desert Island Hospital in Bar Harbor](https://wgme.com/news/i-team/mount-desert-island-hospital-in-bar-harbor-closes-obstetrics-unit-maine-maternity-desert), [Northern Light Inland Hospital in Waterville](https://www.wmtw.com/article/waterville-inland-hospital-no-birthing-services-maine/63542001) and [Houlton Regional Hospital](https://thecounty.me/2025/04/03/business-news/houlton-hospital-will-close-its-birthing-unit/). In just one year, those four Maine hospitals ended obstetric care. Today, [women in Aroostook County drive past vacant delivery rooms](https://www.bangordailynews.com/2026/01/27/aroostook/aroostook-health/maine-dangerous-labor-baby-delivery-maternity-care/) to reach care as far as 90 minutes away. As an ED technician in Lewiston and a volunteer with a farmworker health program, I see these challenges firsthand.  In one of the nation’s most anticipated midterm elections, both Sen. Susan Collins and Graham Platner understand these issues. Platner’s campaign highlights [hour-long hospital commutes for Jackman residents, and Madawaska residents](https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/news/politics/maine-politics/us-senate-candidate-graham-platner-health-care-reform-platform/97-1693f362-01a9-48f9-bf7f-e2d0219b01f6) driving a staggering seven hours for cardiac care. Collins refers to rural hospital closures as a crisis, as she has worked to secure federal funding for rural Maine healthcare. On this issue, Maine’s opposing candidates agree that rural healthcare is collapsing. Their solutions, however, are on a completely different timeline. [Democratic nominee Platner’s answer is Medicare for All.](https://wgme.com/news/local/senate-candidate-graham-platner-pitches-fully-funded-care-to-maine-voters-politics-susan-collins-janet-mills-democratic-primary-medicare-for-all) In theory, a single-payer system provides universal coverage. But Medicare for All has never passed Congress, faces massive fiscal concerns, and even with Platner’s optimism, you’re looking at a multi-year transition. One that Maine cannot wait for.  Advertisement Collins, while in office, pushed for the Rural Health Transformation Program. She secured real money, including $190 million over year one of the five-year fund. But Collins herself identified a key problem this month: [only 15% of RHTP funding is allocated for hospital payments](https://tradeoffs.org/2026/01/22/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-new-50-billion-rural-health-fund/). The remainder is designated for technology, innovation and telehealth. While growth is important within healthcare, a hospital struggling to stay open cannot wait for technology upgrades to be the primary driver in saving it. The fund’s structure doesn’t directly target the issue.  Both candidates see a crisis. Both have proposed solutions. But neither timeline matches the urgency. Fortunately, Maine has solutions available right now, regardless of who wins in November. Here’s what Maine can do: 1. Continue to push for the expansion of the RHTP funds. Collins has [already reached out to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services](https://www.bennet.senate.gov/2026/06/18/bennet-collins-colleagues-press-cms-to-grant-greater-flexibility-to-rural-health-transformation-program-implementation/) (CMS) about allowing leniency for direct hospital payments, and not just innovation projects. CMS hasn’t changed the rules yet, but Maine should not give up.  2. Expand physician residency slots. With about 70 primary care residency positions, [the state is projected to have a shortage of 120 primary care doctors by 2030](https://www.pressherald.com/2026/02/26/maines-primary-care-shortage-is-expected-to-worsen-experts-are-planning-solutions/). Funding an additional 20 positions per year would mean 20 more healthcare professionals who could serve rural Maine every year.  3. Expand the scope of practice for nurse practitioners in rural areas. [Maine recently eliminated the supervision requirement for NPs](https://www.wabi.tv/2026/02/26/bill-seeking-lift-supervision-period-nurse-practitioners-signed-law/), allowing them full independent practice authority. [NPs can diagnose, treat and prescribe medications, and serve as primary care providers.](https://www.mainehealth.org/care-services/primary-care) Rural clinics should take advantage of this and hire more NPs to handle primary care responsibilities, and they’d cost half of what physicians do.  4. Fund and grow Maine’s physician loan repayment program. Maine already has a loan repayment program, [which pays up to $30,000 a year with a $150,000 maximum](https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/bills_129th/billtexts/HP058702.asp), but other states offer additional support. [Iowa offers up to $200,000](https://iaafp.org/rural-loan-repayment/), which makes a meaningful difference in recruitment. The evidence shows that [state loan repayment programs are a top physician recruitment strategy](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13083479/), and [the economic return outweighs the investment](https://nosorh.org/promising-practice-loan-repayment-programs-in-nebraska-yielding-huge-payoffs/). Smart spending to keep doctors in Maine costs less than losing them. These are not revolutionary solutions. They are not as exciting as other proposals or likely to be trending on national podcasts. But they are effective, and Maine can implement them immediately. The model has been proven, but the question is whether Maine’s leadership will choose to fix it now, or keep waiting for a complex solution that may never arrive. Copy the Story Link Tagged: [columns](https://www.pressherald.com/tag/columns/)