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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health disparities

National Rural Health Day HHS Leadership Panel
Recording of a November 15, 2022 webinar featuring leaders from agencies throughout the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) discussing HHS programs and initiatives that are advancing rural behavioral health equity.
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organization: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy
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Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Grantee Stories
Recording of a November 15, 2022 webinar featuring five rural grantees describing their work to advance behavioral health equity in their communities.
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organization: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy
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Responding to One Rural Community's Primary Care Needs: Investing in Workforce and Broad Community Stakeholder Engagement
Commentary describing a model in which an academic health system in Rockingham County, North Carolina made targeted primary care investments to address rural health disparities while working to ensure sustainability within the health workforce. Examines challenges to improving rural health outcomes and offers suggestions for health systems seeking to replicate the Rockingham model.
Author(s): Sherry Hay, Emily M. Hawes, Alyssa Zamierowski, Stokes Ann Hunt, Cristen P. Page
Citation: North Carolina Medical Journal, 83(6), 435-439
Date: 11/2022
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National Rural Health Day Webinar: CMS Framework for Advancing Health Care
Recording of a November 15, 2022, webinar providing an overview of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) Framework for Advancing Health Care in Rural, Tribal and Geographically Isolated Communities. Discusses the CMS Framework for Health Equity and identifies other rural health resources, including other recent CMS rural health reports.
Additional links: Presentation Slides, Transcript
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Native American Veterans: Ensuring Access to VA Health Care and Benefits
Recording of a hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs discusses access to benefits and healthcare for American Indian and Alaska Native veterans. Features testimonies from representatives for the Indian Health Service, the Veterans Health Administration, the Blackfeet Veterans Alliance, the National Congress of American Indians, the National Indian Health Board, and National Council of Urban Indian Health.
Additional links: Larry Wright Jr. Testimony, Leo Pollock Testimony, Mark Upton Testimony, Nickolaus Lewis Testimony, Roselyn Tso Testimony, Sonya Tetnowski Testimony
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organizations: Committee on Veterans' Affairs, U.S. Senate
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Bringing Community Voice into Cross-Sector Data Sharing: Addressing the Health Needs of Children and Youth in Rural South Carolina
A case study that discusses collaboration across multiple organizations involved with the Learning and Action in Policy and Partnerships (LAPP) initiative to improve data sharing related to youth living in rural South Carolina. Discusses how improved data sharing and collaboration can help rural schools and community leaders address students' physical and mental health needs.
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organizations: Center for Health Care Strategies, Data Across Sectors for Health
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Improving the Oral Health of Rural Veterans
Report explores rural veterans' access to oral healthcare. Compares the oral health of rural and urban veterans, highlights barriers to oral healthcare in rural areas, and makes recommendations for expanding access to oral healthcare.
Author(s): Annaliese Cothron, Hayam Megally, Don Clermont
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organization: CareQuest Institute for Oral Health
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Health, Work, and Care in Rural America
Report examining rural access to paid leave from work, the economic impacts of limited access to paid leave, and distances to hospital-based and skilled nursing care. Offers a broad view of rural economic and health dynamics, travel burdens to access hospital-based care, and presents policy recommendations to address paid leave as a social determinant of health.
Author(s): Vicki Shabo, Hannah Friedman
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organization: New America
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Bridging the Digital Divide: Advancing Telehealth Equity
Describes the rise in telehealth use in Massachusetts since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and disparities in use across populations. Summarizes the access, quality, and experience factors associated with telehealth from the perspective of patients, providers, and community leaders. Identifies barriers and factors that promoted telehealth use. Offers recommendations for health plans to advance telehealth equity by addressing the root causes of the digital divide, promoting digital inclusion, removing structural and financial barriers to telehealth access, and supporting higher quality and more inclusive care delivery.
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organizations: Department of Population Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Massachusetts Association of Health Plans, Massachusetts Health Quality Partners
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CMS Framework for Advancing Health Care in Rural, Tribal, and Geographically Isolated Communities
Report outlines the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) plan for improving health equity and health outcomes across the U.S. for rural, tribal, and geographically isolated communities. Details a 6 priority framework emphasizing the application of a community-informed geographic lens; the collection and use of standardized data; support for healthcare professionals; the optimization of medical and communication technology; the expansion of access to comprehensive healthcare coverage, benefits, and services and supports; and innovation and value-based care. Highlights examples of activities CMS is undertaking in support of each priority and recent CMS efforts that align with each priority.
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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