Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Pharmacy and prescription drugs
Patterns of Health Care Use among Rural-Urban Medicare Beneficiaries Age 85 and Older, 2010-2017
Policy brief examining how rural and urban Medicare beneficiaries age 85+ differ in terms of their socioeconomic and health characteristics that may inform healthcare use. Features statistics on trends in healthcare use, including inpatient and emergency department care, outpatient and prescription services, specialists and dentists, and home health and durable medical equipment, with breakdowns by urban and rural location.
Author(s): Yvonne Jonk, Heidi O'Connor, Amanda Burgess, Carly Milkowski
Date: 11/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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Policy brief examining how rural and urban Medicare beneficiaries age 85+ differ in terms of their socioeconomic and health characteristics that may inform healthcare use. Features statistics on trends in healthcare use, including inpatient and emergency department care, outpatient and prescription services, specialists and dentists, and home health and durable medical equipment, with breakdowns by urban and rural location.
Author(s): Yvonne Jonk, Heidi O'Connor, Amanda Burgess, Carly Milkowski
Date: 11/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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Use of and Retention on Video, Telephone, and In-Person Buprenorphine Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Examines modality of treatment delivery for patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) and how various modalities are associated with 90-day patient retention. Analyzes 17,182 Veterans Health Administration (VHA) patients who received buprenorphine for OUD treatment from March 2020 to March 2021 by video, telephone, in-person care, or a combination of the modalities. Includes data broken down by age, sex, race/ethnicity, VHA eligibility, housing status, substance use, mental health, comorbidities, and rurality, including urban, large rural, small/isolated rural, and unknown location.
Author(s): Madeline C. Frost, Lan Zhang, H. Myra Kim, Lewei (Allison) Lin
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 5(10), e2236298
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
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Examines modality of treatment delivery for patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) and how various modalities are associated with 90-day patient retention. Analyzes 17,182 Veterans Health Administration (VHA) patients who received buprenorphine for OUD treatment from March 2020 to March 2021 by video, telephone, in-person care, or a combination of the modalities. Includes data broken down by age, sex, race/ethnicity, VHA eligibility, housing status, substance use, mental health, comorbidities, and rurality, including urban, large rural, small/isolated rural, and unknown location.
Author(s): Madeline C. Frost, Lan Zhang, H. Myra Kim, Lewei (Allison) Lin
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 5(10), e2236298
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
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September 2022 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) September 2022 meeting. Covers Medicare payments to safety-net clinicians, the development of a prototype post-acute care prospective payment system, nursing facility staffing requirements and data, the expansion of telehealth during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) and payment for telehealth services after the PHE, inpatient psychiatric facility care, and Part D data on drug rebates and discounts. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) September 2022 meeting. Covers Medicare payments to safety-net clinicians, the development of a prototype post-acute care prospective payment system, nursing facility staffing requirements and data, the expansion of telehealth during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) and payment for telehealth services after the PHE, inpatient psychiatric facility care, and Part D data on drug rebates and discounts. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the Payment Systems for Hospital Outpatient Departments and Ambulatory Surgical Centers for 2023
Comments on a July 26, 2022, Federal Register proposed rule revising the Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Medicare Ambulatory Surgical Center (ACS) payment system for calendar year 2023. Includes considerations for payment for 340B drugs, additional facility payments for Rural Emergency Hospitals, telehealth rehabilitation services beyond the COVID-19 public health emergency, and efforts for measuring equity and healthcare quality disparities.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Comments on a July 26, 2022, Federal Register proposed rule revising the Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Medicare Ambulatory Surgical Center (ACS) payment system for calendar year 2023. Includes considerations for payment for 340B drugs, additional facility payments for Rural Emergency Hospitals, telehealth rehabilitation services beyond the COVID-19 public health emergency, and efforts for measuring equity and healthcare quality disparities.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Broadband Internet Subscription Rates and Opioid Prescribing via Telemedicine During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Explores the effect of the DEA's temporary permission for providers to prescribe opioids via telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic in Kentucky. Discusses the effect this permission had on rural areas and in counties with low and high rates of broadband access.
Author(s): Douglas R. Oyler, Svetla Slavova, Patricia R. Freeman, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 38(4), 900-907
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
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Explores the effect of the DEA's temporary permission for providers to prescribe opioids via telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic in Kentucky. Discusses the effect this permission had on rural areas and in counties with low and high rates of broadband access.
Author(s): Douglas R. Oyler, Svetla Slavova, Patricia R. Freeman, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 38(4), 900-907
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
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Update on Rural Independently Owned Pharmacy Closures in the United States, 2003-2021
Provides updated information on independently owned rural pharmacy closures from 2003 to 2021. Compares the annual retail pharmacy counts and percent change in the number of pharmacies by pharmacy type and metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore county status. Builds on past publications from RUPRI regarding rural pharmacy closures.
Author(s): Edmer Lazaro, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Provides updated information on independently owned rural pharmacy closures from 2003 to 2021. Compares the annual retail pharmacy counts and percent change in the number of pharmacies by pharmacy type and metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore county status. Builds on past publications from RUPRI regarding rural pharmacy closures.
Author(s): Edmer Lazaro, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Availability of Pharmacies in Minoritized Racial/Ethnic Areas
Explores the availability of pharmacies nationwide across ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) categorized by rurality and racial and ethnic composition. Provides data on the number of pharmacies per capita by ZCTA rurality and minoritized ethnic and racial group category and the distribution of urban and rural ZCTAs that do not have a pharmacy by ethnic and racial group.
Author(s): Whitney E. Zahnd, Gabriel Benavidez, Oyeleye Oyesode, et al.
Date: 08/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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Explores the availability of pharmacies nationwide across ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) categorized by rurality and racial and ethnic composition. Provides data on the number of pharmacies per capita by ZCTA rurality and minoritized ethnic and racial group category and the distribution of urban and rural ZCTAs that do not have a pharmacy by ethnic and racial group.
Author(s): Whitney E. Zahnd, Gabriel Benavidez, Oyeleye Oyesode, et al.
Date: 08/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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Medicare Beneficiary Access to Prescription Drugs in Rural Areas
Policy brief identifying the types of pharmacies used by Medicare beneficiaries in rural areas with limited or no access to pharmacies, using data from July 2016 to December 2017. Features statistics on county and beneficiary characteristics and claim event counts, with breakdowns by county pharmacy cohort.
Author(s): Onyinye Oyeka, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Policy brief identifying the types of pharmacies used by Medicare beneficiaries in rural areas with limited or no access to pharmacies, using data from July 2016 to December 2017. Features statistics on county and beneficiary characteristics and claim event counts, with breakdowns by county pharmacy cohort.
Author(s): Onyinye Oyeka, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Rural and Urban Pharmacy Presence – Pharmacy Deserts
Uses data from the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs to explore the number of counties with no pharmacy presence between January - June 2022. Compares pharmacy absence and the characteristics of counties with no retail pharmacy across noncore, micropolitan, and metropolitan counties.
Author(s): Joanne Constantin, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Uses data from the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs to explore the number of counties with no pharmacy presence between January - June 2022. Compares pharmacy absence and the characteristics of counties with no retail pharmacy across noncore, micropolitan, and metropolitan counties.
Author(s): Joanne Constantin, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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RHC COVID-19 Program Updates
Recording of an August 18, 2022, webinar discussing and answering questions about COVID-19 therapeutics, testing and mitigation, vaccine, and provider relief programs available to Rural Health Clinics (RHCs). Part of the Rural Health Clinic Technical Assistance Series.
Additional links: Presentation Slides, Transcript
Date: 08/2022
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: National Association of Rural Health Clinics
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Recording of an August 18, 2022, webinar discussing and answering questions about COVID-19 therapeutics, testing and mitigation, vaccine, and provider relief programs available to Rural Health Clinics (RHCs). Part of the Rural Health Clinic Technical Assistance Series.
Additional links: Presentation Slides, Transcript
Date: 08/2022
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: National Association of Rural Health Clinics
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