Skip to main content
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Benefit enrollment and application

Evaluation of the USDA Summer EBT Demonstrations: Lessons Learned From More Than a Decade of Research
Reports results of the Summer EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) demonstration project, 2015-2018 and 2019-2022. Describes Summer EBT use patterns, nutritional value, and effect on childhood food insecurity. Identifies strategies for better program planning, implementation, and administration. Discusses program operation and challenges in tribal organizations and rural communities.
Additional links: 2015-2018 Evaluation, 2019-2022 Evaluation, Summary
Author(s): René Nutter, Ayesha Enver, Maria Boyle, et al.
Date: 03/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: USDA Food and Nutrition Service
view details
Closing the Coverage Gap: Policy Considerations for Public-Private Solutions to Expand Health Insurance in Georgia
Explores policy and funding considerations influencing the expansion of health insurance in Georgia, including current programs, population health and demographics, and Medicaid expansion models. Evaluates the suitability of the Arkansas "private option" expansion approach for Georgia, and discusses its implementation. Highlights rural concerns throughout.
Date: 02/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Georgia Health Initiative
view details
Beneficiary and Clinician Perspectives on Medicare and Other Issues: Findings from 2023 Focus Groups in Select States
Summarizes findings from 24 focus groups of Medicare beneficiaries, Medicare and Medicaid (dual eligible) beneficiaries, and clinicians conducted between May and July 2023, including three virtual focus groups of rural Medicare beneficiaries. Highlights themes that emerged across the focus groups covering Medicare coverage options, access to care, telehealth, organization of care, and prescription drugs.
Date: 02/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, NORC at the University of Chicago
view details
Examining Increases in HUD Income Limits in Low-Income States
Examines households that are eligible for U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) assistance across geographic areas. Provides information on how HUD calculates low-income households in nonmetro and metro areas and provides maps and figures depicting low-income families at the state and county level. Includes tables showing a state's nonmetro income median in relation to eligibility for Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC).
Date: 02/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
view details
Medicare Advantage: It's Here, Now What?
Slides from a presentation at the 2024 National Rural Health Association's Policy Institute conference that discuss Medicare Advantage, with data on eligibility and enrollment percentages depicted for select states as well as by metro versus nonmetro location.
Author(s): Keith J Mueller
Date: 02/2024
Type: Presentation Slides
Sponsoring organizations: Iowa College of Public Health, Rural Policy Research Institute
view details
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Equity Action Plan
Offers overview of strategies from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for increasing equity for veterans in benefits, health, access to VA services, economic security, and data. Highlights equity progress updates and accomplishments. Discusses rural throughout.
Date: 02/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
view details
USDA Overview of the IFR for Summer EBT and Non-Congregate Summer Meal Service in Rural Areas
Slides that provide an overview of the interim final rule (IFR) regarding the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program for Children (Summer EBT) and non-congregate summer meals in rural areas.
Author(s): Kevin Maskornick, Jess Saracino, Anne Fiala
Date: 01/2024
Type: Presentation Slides
view details
Full Committee Oversight Hearing: "Rural Access: Is VA Meeting All Veterans Where They Live?"
The House Committee on Veterans' Affairs full committee oversight hearing discusses rural veteran's access to healthcare through the VA. Features a discussion of the VA's role as both a healthcare provider and a payer via its Community Care Program. Highlights technological challenges related to telehealth, such as lack of broadband connections and technological literacy of older veterans. Presents testimony from the VA, the Government Accountability Office, the Navajo Nation, and veteran advocacy groups, among others.
Additional links: Witnesses' Testimonies
Date: 01/2024
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: House Committee on Veterans' Affairs
view details
Medicaid and CHIP Renewal and Transition Resources for Partners
Offers resources for states, beneficiary and provider organizations, and other partners to better assist people with Medicaid or Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage to renew their healthcare coverage or transition to insurance options that better suit their needs. Includes outreach materials for different population categories, including racial and ethnic populations, people with disabilities and older adults, and rural populations.
Date: 2024
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
view details
Rural/Urban Differences in Receipt of Governmental Rental Assistance: Relationship to Health and Disability
Examines the relationship of housing to health and disability. Utilizes 2021 National Health Interview Survey data to analyze home ownership and rental assistance by rural versus urban location, with further breakdowns by age, gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, marital status, education and employment status, self-rated health, region, and disability status.
Author(s): Carrie Henning-Smith, Alexis Swendener, Katie Rydberg, Megan Lahr, Hawking Yam
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 40(2), 394-400
Date: 2024
Type: Document
view details