Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health insurance
Telehealth: Use in Medicare and Medicaid
Discusses the extent to which telehealth is used by Medicare and Medicaid, the factors affecting the use of telehealth in Medicare, and how emerging payment and delivery models could affect future telehealth use. Includes rural-specific information throughout with particular attention paid to the role of rural healthcare facilities as originating sites.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Discusses the extent to which telehealth is used by Medicare and Medicaid, the factors affecting the use of telehealth in Medicare, and how emerging payment and delivery models could affect future telehealth use. Includes rural-specific information throughout with particular attention paid to the role of rural healthcare facilities as originating sites.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Drug Discount Program: Update on Agency Efforts to Improve 340B Program Oversight
Testimony before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Committee on Energy and Commerce, U.S. House of Representatives, describing the Health Resources and Services Administration's (HRSA) actions and plans for improving 340B program oversight. Also provides an update on the Government Accountability Office's work regarding the 340B program and HRSA oversight. Includes information on 340B program participants, background, structure, audit frequency, and more.
Additional links: Examining HRSA's Oversight of the 340B Drug Pricing Program, Full Report
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Testimony before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Committee on Energy and Commerce, U.S. House of Representatives, describing the Health Resources and Services Administration's (HRSA) actions and plans for improving 340B program oversight. Also provides an update on the Government Accountability Office's work regarding the 340B program and HRSA oversight. Includes information on 340B program participants, background, structure, audit frequency, and more.
Additional links: Examining HRSA's Oversight of the 340B Drug Pricing Program, Full Report
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Health Insurance is Key to Farm & Ranch Economic Viability - 2017 National Farmer and Rancher Survey Findings
Details the results of a national farmer and rancher survey regarding health insurance coverage and its importance to health of agricultural workers and their families. Discusses the impact of health insurance coverage and cost on the agricultural economy.
Author(s): Shoshanah Inwood, Alana Knudson, Katlyn Morris, et al.
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: HIREDnAg
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Details the results of a national farmer and rancher survey regarding health insurance coverage and its importance to health of agricultural workers and their families. Discusses the impact of health insurance coverage and cost on the agricultural economy.
Author(s): Shoshanah Inwood, Alana Knudson, Katlyn Morris, et al.
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: HIREDnAg
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Coverage Trends for American Indian and Alaska Native Children and Families
Analyzes data from the U.S. Census Bureau to show trends in health insurance coverage rates among American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) children and families between 2008 and 2015. Examines the expanded role of Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in driving down the AI/AN uninsured rates, particularly in states with the largest AI/AN populations.
Author(s): Joan Alker, Karina Wagnerman, Andy Schneider
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: Georgetown University Health Policy Institute
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Analyzes data from the U.S. Census Bureau to show trends in health insurance coverage rates among American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) children and families between 2008 and 2015. Examines the expanded role of Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in driving down the AI/AN uninsured rates, particularly in states with the largest AI/AN populations.
Author(s): Joan Alker, Karina Wagnerman, Andy Schneider
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: Georgetown University Health Policy Institute
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Changes in Hospital Quality Associated with Hospital Value-Based Purchasing
Examines whether quality improved more in acute care hospitals exposed to Medicare's Hospital Value-Based Purchasing (HVBP) program. Uses Critical Access Hospitals as a comparison for clinical process, patient experience, and mortality measures.
Author(s): Andrew M. Ryan, Sam Krinsky, Kristen A. Maurer, Justin B. Dimick
Citation: New England Journal of Medicine, 376(24), 2358-2366
Date: 06/2017
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Examines whether quality improved more in acute care hospitals exposed to Medicare's Hospital Value-Based Purchasing (HVBP) program. Uses Critical Access Hospitals as a comparison for clinical process, patient experience, and mortality measures.
Author(s): Andrew M. Ryan, Sam Krinsky, Kristen A. Maurer, Justin B. Dimick
Citation: New England Journal of Medicine, 376(24), 2358-2366
Date: 06/2017
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Medicaid Expansion: Behavioral Health Treatment Use in Selected States in 2014
Report to Congress describing the population of Medicaid expansion enrollees with behavioral health diagnoses in 2014, and the use of behavioral health treatment among the enrolled population. Results are based on the experience of four states: Iowa, New York, Washington, and West Virginia. Includes a discussion on rural/urban geographic distribution of enrollees and the barriers to accessing treatment for enrollees living in rural areas.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Report to Congress describing the population of Medicaid expansion enrollees with behavioral health diagnoses in 2014, and the use of behavioral health treatment among the enrolled population. Results are based on the experience of four states: Iowa, New York, Washington, and West Virginia. Includes a discussion on rural/urban geographic distribution of enrollees and the barriers to accessing treatment for enrollees living in rural areas.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Hospital Value-Based Purchasing: CMS Should Take Steps to Ensure Lower Quality Hospitals Do Not Qualify for Bonuses
Examines the scoring methodology used by the Hospital Value-Based Purchasing (HVBP) program, which measures quality and efficiency within multiple hospital types including small, rural, and safety-net hospitals. Addresses differences in how safety net, small rural, and small urban hospitals performed, how payment adjustments changed for them over time, and the impact of an efficiency score on payment adjustments. Supports revising the methodology to apply the standards more evenly.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Examines the scoring methodology used by the Hospital Value-Based Purchasing (HVBP) program, which measures quality and efficiency within multiple hospital types including small, rural, and safety-net hospitals. Addresses differences in how safety net, small rural, and small urban hospitals performed, how payment adjustments changed for them over time, and the impact of an efficiency score on payment adjustments. Supports revising the methodology to apply the standards more evenly.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System, June 2017
Includes chapters on implementing a unified payment system for post-acute care, Part B drug payment policies, the redesign of the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and other alternative payment models, drug and device manufacturer payments to physicians and teaching hospitals, stand-alone emergency departments, and skilled nursing facility use. Rural hospitals and rural patient populations are discussed throughout the report.
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Includes chapters on implementing a unified payment system for post-acute care, Part B drug payment policies, the redesign of the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and other alternative payment models, drug and device manufacturer payments to physicians and teaching hospitals, stand-alone emergency departments, and skilled nursing facility use. Rural hospitals and rural patient populations are discussed throughout the report.
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Factors Affecting States' Ability to Respond to Federal Medicaid Cuts and Caps: Which States Are Most At Risk?
Examines 30 key factors that contribute to state-by-state differences in Medicaid per enrollee spending including rural population, and uses the factors to rank and identify which states are at greatest risk if federal Medicaid cuts or caps are enacted. Presents findings across five main areas: Medicaid policy, demographics, health status, available tax revenue and state budget choices, and healthcare markets.
Author(s): Robin Rudowitz, Allison Valentine, Petry Ubri, Julia Zur
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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Examines 30 key factors that contribute to state-by-state differences in Medicaid per enrollee spending including rural population, and uses the factors to rank and identify which states are at greatest risk if federal Medicaid cuts or caps are enacted. Presents findings across five main areas: Medicaid policy, demographics, health status, available tax revenue and state budget choices, and healthcare markets.
Author(s): Robin Rudowitz, Allison Valentine, Petry Ubri, Julia Zur
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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Medicaid in Small Towns and Rural America: A Lifeline for Children, Families, and Communities
Uses data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) to explore the changing levels of Medicaid coverage and uninsured rates at the county level by age. Addresses the role of Medicaid in the 46 states containing small-town and rural populations. Includes numerous charts, maps, and graphs to help illustrate the relationship between Medicaid growth and uninsured rates in rural areas, focusing on the time period from 2008-2009 to 2014-2015.
Additional links: State Data on Adult Health Coverage in Small Towns and Rural Areas, State Data on Child Health Coverage in Small Towns and Rural Areas, State Data on Non-Elderly Health Coverage in Small Towns and Rural Areas, State Data on Seniors' Health Coverage in Small Towns and Rural Areas
Author(s): Jack Hoadley, Karina Wagnerman, Joan Alker, Mark Holmes
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organizations: Georgetown University Health Policy Institute, North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Uses data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) to explore the changing levels of Medicaid coverage and uninsured rates at the county level by age. Addresses the role of Medicaid in the 46 states containing small-town and rural populations. Includes numerous charts, maps, and graphs to help illustrate the relationship between Medicaid growth and uninsured rates in rural areas, focusing on the time period from 2008-2009 to 2014-2015.
Additional links: State Data on Adult Health Coverage in Small Towns and Rural Areas, State Data on Child Health Coverage in Small Towns and Rural Areas, State Data on Non-Elderly Health Coverage in Small Towns and Rural Areas, State Data on Seniors' Health Coverage in Small Towns and Rural Areas
Author(s): Jack Hoadley, Karina Wagnerman, Joan Alker, Mark Holmes
Date: 06/2017
Sponsoring organizations: Georgetown University Health Policy Institute, North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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