As rural hospitals struggle, Georgia is letting stand-alone emergency rooms treat people in the countryside who would otherwise have to drive far away when they break an arm, need stitches or have a baby.

The state agency that licenses medical facilities changed its rules this year to allow a rural hospital that's failing or has already closed in the last year to scale back its operations and reopen as a freestanding emergency room. Before, emergency departments were only allowed at full-service hospitals that fulfilled criteria including having inpatient beds and other expensive requirements.

Georgia's leaders backed the rule change allowing stand-alone ERs after three rural hospitals closed in 2013. Many are taking financial losses.

"A hospital closes now, particularly in a small, rural community, there's nothing, nothing," said Clyde Reese, commissioner of Georgia's Department of Community Health. "So this is an attempt to have something, some service, some infrastructure left in a community so all the doctors won't leave, so the EMS services won't leave and follow the facilities."

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