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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Income support and assistance

Understanding Low-Income and Low-Access Census Tracts Across the Nation: Subnational and Subpopulation Estimates of Access to Healthy Food
Examines access to food stores by state, metropolitan, and micropolitan area as a proxy for healthy food access. Estimates rural areas' distance to the nearest and third-nearest food store with breakdowns by race/ethnicity, income, age, vehicle access, and participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Additional links: Report Summary
Author(s): Alana Rhone, Michele Ver Ploeg, Ryan Williams, Vince Breneman
Date: 05/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Grantee Spotlight: Good News for Bastrop County, Texas!
Spotlights a grantee of the Hogg Foundation's Collaborative Approaches to Well-Being in Rural Communities initiative, Bastrop County Cares. Highlights their work in building a collaborative of community liaisons to engage members of historically and geographically excluded groups in decision-making processes in order to create inclusive, systems-level change to improve resident well-being across the county.
Author(s): Josephine Gurch
Date: 02/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Hogg Foundation for Mental Health
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The Poverty-Reducing Effect of Five Key Government Programs in Rural and Urban America
Examines rural and urban residents' income from five social programs: Social Security, disability benefits, federal and state cash assistance, the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Looks at the role of these programs in reducing poverty and reports how much poverty would increase in rural and urban areas without each program.
Author(s): Jessica Carson Marybeth Mattingly
Date: 2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Carsey School of Public Policy
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EITC Continues to Reach Families in Poor Places
Briefly discusses the role of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) in helping low-income workers. Includes maps showing county-level information on EITC filers, with Map 1 identifying high child poverty counties and Map 2 identifying nonmetropolitan counties.
Additional links: Map 2: Nonmetropolitan Counties
Author(s): Andrew Schaefer, Beth Mattingly, Kennedy Nickerson , Jessica Carson
Date: 10/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Carsey School of Public Policy
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How Does Household Income Affect Child Personality Traits and Behaviors?
Reports on a study using longitudinal data to determine the effects of family income on a child's emotional and behavioral health, and personality characteristics, and the mechanisms supporting these effects. The study included American Indian families who received financial support from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians tribal government, and compared changes at the household level prior to and after receiving these funds, as well as comparisons with families who did not receive this funding. Comparisons of economic status were noted between rural Native Americans and rural African Americans.
Author(s): Randall Akee, William Copeland, E. Jane Costello, Emilia Simeonova
Citation: American Economic Review,108(3), 775-827
Date: 03/2018
Type: Document
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Priced Out: The Housing Crisis for People with Disabilities
Reports on a national rental housing study detailing the severity of the housing crisis experienced by low-income people with disabilities in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan statistical areas across the U.S. Particular focus is on non-elderly adults with disabilities who rely on Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Discusses how limited income and substandard housing places people with disabilities at greater risk of exacerbated chronic health conditions.
Author(s): Gina Schaak, Lisa Sloane, Francine Arienti, Andrew Zovistoski
Date: 12/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities, Technical Assistance Collaborative
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Examination of the Effect of SNAP Benefit and Eligibility Parameters on Low-Income Households
Examines whether or not policies determining benefit levels for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) reflect current spending patterns of low-income households in the United States. Includes statistics, such as a rural versus urban comparison of low-income household spending and average spending by low-income household characteristic and expenditure type, among others.
Author(s): Joshua Leftin, Thomas Godfrey, James Mabli, Nancy Wemmerus, Stephen Tordella
Date: 10/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Decision Demographics and Mathematica Policy Research, USDA Food and Nutrition Service
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Employment, Poverty, and Public Assistance in the Rural United States
Compares economic and demographic characteristics of rural counties by county income level. Includes data on employment, race/ethnicity, and English-language proficiency. Also examines reliance on public sector supports: the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and children's health insurance.
Author(s): Rebecca Glauber, Andrew Schaefer
Date: 2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Carsey School of Public Policy
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Unequal Lives: The State of Black Women and Families in the Rural South
Analyzes the health and well-being of low-income Black women in nine rural counties across Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. Identifies barriers to success and economic security, including poverty, low educational attainment, and inadequate access to public infrastructure, healthcare, and more. Includes statistics and demographics for each of the states and counties included in the study.
Date: 07/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Southern Rural Black Women's Initiative
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Dynamics of Economic Well-Being: Participation in Government Programs, 2009-2012: Who Gets Assistance?
Provides information on the characteristics and participation rates of people receiving benefits from Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), housing assistance, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and general assistance. Tables in the appendices include metropolitan and non-metropolitan participation rates by program.
Author(s): Shelley K. Irving, Tracy A. Loveless
Date: 05/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Census Bureau
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