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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Policy

'It's about the Smoke, Not the Smoker': Messages That Motivate Rural Communities to Support Smoke-free Policies
Discusses the results of a series of focus groups and surveys with community activists in three rural Kentucky counties regarding the use of promotional materials used to endorse smoke-free policies.
Author(s): Ganna Kostygina, Ellen J. Hahn, Mary Kay
Citation: Health Education Research, 29(1), 58-71
Date: 02/2014
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FMG/J1 Visa Waiver Physicians
National Rural Health Association's policy brief describing their position on Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) seeking a waiver for their J1 Visa.
Author(s): Jerry Coopey, Susan Frazier, Chris Felton, Jonathan Wade, Vicki Weidenbacher-Hoper.
Date: 02/2014
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Rural Veterans: A Special Concern for Rural Health Advocates
Policy brief describing the special healthcare needs of rural veterans. Offers policy recommendations to address these issues. Covers access to primary care, specialty care, physical therapy, women's health services, and mental health services focusing on traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Author(s): J. Alison Alfers, Hilda R. Heady
Date: 02/2014
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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The Future of the Frontier Extended Stay Clinic
Describes the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) Frontier Extended Stay Clinic (FESC) demonstration project. Identifies the successes and challenges, and discusses the financial sustainability of the FESC model. Includes policy recommendations and lessons learned.
Author(s): Susan Wilger, Saskia Van Hecke
Date: 02/2014
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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The Extender Policies: What Are They and How Should They Continue Under a Permanent SGR Repeal Landscape
Provides resources from the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee hearing on Medicare extender policies to determine whether they should be made permanent. Addresses payment adjustments for low-volume hospitals, rural areas, and more. Includes statements from the Rural Hospital Coalition, American Hospital Association, and National Rural Health Association on the impact of these payment policies on rural hospitals and rural beneficiaries.
Additional links: Statement of the American Hospital Association, Statement of the National Rural Health Association, Statement of the Rural Hospital Coalition, Transcript
Date: 01/2014
Sponsoring organization: House Energy and Commerce Committee, Subcommittee on Health
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The Intersection of Rural Poverty and Federal Human Services Programs
Discusses challenges faced by federal human services programs in addressing rural poverty. Highlights two case studies offering different approaches for meeting these challenges, one from Montana and one from Colorado.
Date: 01/2014
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Rural Implications of the Affordable Care Act Outreach, Education, and Enrollment
Outlines opportunities for rural communities to benefit from the Affordable Care Act and discusses the importance of efforts aimed at furthering outreach, education, and enrollment in health insurance in rural areas.
Date: 01/2014
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Compacts of Free Association: Actions Needed to Improve Oversight and Accountability of U.S. Assistance to Micronesia and the Marshall Islands
Testimony before a U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee regarding Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands spending of compact sector funds in the education and health sectors for fiscal years 2007 through 2011.
Additional links: Full Report
Author(s): David Gootnick
Date: 01/2014
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Indian Health Care: Impact of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
Summarizes key changes made in the re-authorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (IHCIA), including the Affordable Care Act (ACA) provisions related to American Indians and Alaska Natives enrolled in and receiving services from Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
Date: 01/2014
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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Not Enough Primary-Care Doctors? Try Missouri's Prescription
Describes how medical school graduates are legally allowed to work as assistant physicians in rural and underserved areas of Missouri without having completed a residency program. Discusses legislation that allows medical school graduates to become practicing assistant physicians and practice requirements.
Author(s): Arthur L. Caplan
Citation: Missouri Medicine, 111(6), 474-475
Date: 2014
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