Thompson Fights Mississippi's Rural Health Crisis, Rising Costs
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS-2) spent the week focused on rural health care, maternity care, Head Start and the rising cost of everyday necessities for families across Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District.
Mississippi’s 2nd District remains one of the lowest-income congressional districts in the country. Census data show a median household income of about $47,500, while more than one-quarter of residents live below the poverty line.
Health care access and household costs therefore remain particularly significant issues across a district that includes much of the Mississippi Delta and portions of the Jackson metropolitan area.
Rural health care dominated Thompson’s public communications this week. On Aug. 13, he criticized Mississippi’s continued refusal to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, writing that the state is “leaving $1 billion in federal health care dollars on the table each year while our rural hospitals struggle to stay open.” He also criticized Gov. Tate Reeve…