Healthcare in Wyoming

Abortion and Reproductive Rights are covered on a separate Hot Button page.

Wyoming qualifies as a “medical desert.” What is that?

Like most things in Wyoming it’s a matter of distance and low population.

“‘Medical deserts are areas where population healthcare needs are unmet partially or totally due to lack of adequate access or improper quality of healthcare services caused by (i) insufficient human resources in health or (ii) facilities, (iii) long waiting times, (iv) disproportionate high costs of services or (v) other socio-cultural barriers’.” 

— National Library of Medicine, part of the National Institutes of Health

GoodRx, a pharmaceutical clearinghouse for low-cost prescriptions, gave a definition a little more clarity, “We did this by identifying “healthcare deserts,” or areas across the U.S. where people lack adequate access to six key healthcare services: (1) pharmacies, (2) primary care providers, (3) hospitals, (4) hospital beds, (5) trauma centers, and (6) low-cost health centers. We then looked at how personal and financial barriers can make it even harder to access care in a healthcare desert and perpetuate health disparities.” Its study also concluded that 80 percent of all U.S. counties were healthcare desserts.

According to one 2022 study, eight Wyoming counties are medical deserts, affecting 95,249 people.

What’s the legislature doing about more healthcare infrastructure and access? Very little.

This session features a bill giving protection against liability and unprofessional conduct for prescribers and pharmacists who provide a drug for off-label uses. HB0121 would “require hospitals to disclose prices for certain items and services, to provide civil penalties and to prohibit debt collection by noncompliant facilities.” 

HB0231, Medical education funding, would give 2.18 million to the University of Wyoming to contract with the University of Utah medical school to train up to five students in medicine over four years, starting with academic year 2025‑2026; Recipients of the education grants  must “actively engage in professional practice or other professional pursuits in Wyoming” for three years after graduation.

HB0115, “Medical Ethics Defense Act,” provides protections “allowing health care providers, health care institutions and health care payers the right to refuse to participate in or pay for health care services as specified; authorizing religious-based health care organizations to make decisions consistent with religious beliefs; prohibiting discrimination for making health care decisions based on conscience; prohibiting adverse licensing actions based on protected expressive activity.” A similar bill is HB0222.

Creditors would be prohibited from reporting medical debt to credit agencies under HB0195.

HB0241 holds the promise of more access if it passes because “authoriz(es) health care providers to provide telehealth services to persons in Wyoming without a Wyoming license.” (This, of course, presumes you live where there is adequate Internet.)

Governor wants more for Medicaid providers to improve obstetric and mental health care services

Gov. Mark Gordon aims to increase the Medicaid rates paid to providers to improve access to obstetric and mental health care services. Evanston Regional Hospital discontinued its labor and delivery services at the end of 2024, making it the third hospital in Wyoming to eliminate obstetrician services in recent years. Medicaid eligible births account for approximately one-third of the deliveries in Wyoming and the governor has requested an additional $2.3 million for the Wyoming Department of Health to cover these deliveries.

He has also supported more funding for community college programs in support occupations, like nursing assistant and respiratory therapy.

Make you mad? Get involved as a party member

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Want to know more? Check out these resources:

ACLU of Wyoming - general site