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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by State: State-by-state

Information on Medicare Telehealth
Report to Congress, as mandated by the 21st Century Cures Act, examining how Medicare patients are using telehealth, particularly in rural areas, with breakdowns by race/ethnicity, age group, and primary diagnoses including mental health issues. Includes an analysis of Medicare claims data regarding high volume services that could be delivered through telehealth, an overview of telehealth models funded by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, and state-level breakdowns of Medicare telehealth data. Discusses who may benefit from telehealth expansion and barriers to expansion.
Date: 11/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Uninsured Rates in Urban and Rural America
Highlights a collection of interactive graphics providing data on uninsured rates for people under age 65 in completely rural counties, counties that are mostly rural, and counties that are mostly urban. Includes state and county-level data.
Date: 11/2018
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Census Bureau
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Geographic Availability of Low-Dose Computed Tomography for Lung Cancer Screening in the United States, 2017
Includes state-level tables and maps showing locations of lung cancer screening sites and percentage of population ages 55-79 lacking access to a center, and lung cancer mortality versus accessibility of screening centers. Helps identify rural areas in need of screening program creation or expansion.
Author(s): Jan M. Eberth, Parisa Bozorgi, Logan M. Lebrón, et al.
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 15
Date: 10/2018
Type: Document
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Health Insurance Coverage in Small Towns and Rural America: The Role of Medicaid Expansion
Analyzes health insurance coverage for low-income, rural adults in 46 states. Includes an examination of American Community Survey data to determine uninsured rates by age for 2008-2009 and 2015-2016. Covers effects of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in small towns and rural areas, including Medicaid expansion. Provides county-level data, information on health insurance coverage for children, and maps in the additional links.
Additional links: Full Report, Interactive Map: The Percent of Adults in Small Towns and Rural Areas Covered by Medicaid, 2015/16, Interactive Map: The Percent of Children in Small Towns and Rural Areas Covered by Medicaid, 2015/16, Press Release, Update: State Data on Health Coverage in Small Towns and Rural Areas, 2015/16
Author(s): Jack Hoadley, Joan Alker, Mark Holmes
Date: 09/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Georgetown University Health Policy Institute, North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Nurse Practitioners: A Solution to America's Primary Care Crisis
Examines trends in supply and demand of nurse practitioners (NPs), including projected supply of physicians and NPs in rural areas. Includes a table listing state-level scope-of-practice regulatory restrictions on NPs as of 2018.
Author(s): Peter Buerhaus
Date: 09/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: American Enterprise Institute
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Declines in Child Poverty Continue in 2017: Overall Rate Still Above Pre-Recession Level
Examines trends in child poverty from 2007 through 2017, with information for rural areas, suburban areas, and cities. Appendix Table 1 provides state-by-state data.
Additional links: Appendix Table 1
Author(s): Jessica A. Carson, Andrew Schaefer, Marybeth J. Mattingly
Date: 09/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Carsey School of Public Policy
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Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2017
Provides statistics on health insurance coverage in 2017 and also focuses on changes between 2016 and 2017. Tables 5 and A-4 list statistics for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas. Based on data from the Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement and the American Community Survey.
Additional links: Visualizations
Author(s): Edward R. Berchick, Emily Hood, Jessica C. Barnett
Date: 09/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Census Bureau
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Household Food Security in the United States in 2017
Reports on household food security, food expenditures, and the use of federal food and nutrition assistance programs in 2017. Includes food insecurity statistics for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas.
Additional links: Report Summary, Statistical Supplement
Author(s): Alisha Coleman-Jensen, Matthew P. Rabbitt, Christian A. Gregory, Anita Singh
Date: 09/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Rural Hospital Mergers from 2005 through 2016
Examines the number of mergers of rural hospitals across the U.S. from 2005-2016. Looks at the effect of mergers and acquisitions on rural healthcare.
Author(s): Dunc Williams Jr., Sharita R. Thomas, Hilda A. Howard, George H. Pink
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Update: Independently Owned Pharmacy Closures in Rural America, 2003-2018
Provides updated information on independently owned rural pharmacy closures from 2003 to 2018. Includes state-level data on rural pharmacy closures. Builds on past publications from RUPRI regarding rural pharmacy closures.
Author(s): Abiodun Salako, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 07/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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