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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Policy

Rural Public Health Financing: The Relationship Between Infrastructure and Local Program Funding
Describes how federal funds for disease prevention and health promotion activities are distributed to local health departments (LHDs) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) at the rural local level.
Author(s): Michael Meit, Lorraine Ettaro, Benjamin Hamlin, Bhumika Piya
Date: 06/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Reforming the Delivery System
Describes a direction for Medicare payment and delivery system reform, makes recommendations to promote primary care, and examines hospital–physician collaborative relationships. Includes rural/urban data related to skilled nursing facilities and hospice.
Date: 06/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Issues in Staffing Emergency Medical Services: A National Survey of Local Rural and Urban EMS Directors
Explores rural-urban differences in medical oversight and the recruitment and retention of emergency medical technicians and paramedics as reported by a survey of 1,425 local EMS directors.
Author(s): Victoria Freeman
Date: 05/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Michigan Strategic Opportunities for Rural Health Improvement: A State Rural Health Plan 2008-2012
Assessed the health status in Michigan's rural areas based on the Michigan Rural Health Profile, Delphi Survey results, and the Michigan Strategic Opportunities for Rural Health Improvement: April 2008 - April 2012: Final Report. Identified three key rural health issues to be addressed which include: availability and accessibility to healthcare services; recruitment and retention of healthcare providers (nurses, physician assistants, dentists, physicians, and allied health); and healthy lifestyles.
Author(s): John Barnas, Lonnie Barnett, Traci Wightman, et al.
Date: 04/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Michigan Center for Rural Health
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The 2008 Report to the Secretary: Rural Health and Human Services Issues
Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Includes a 20 year retrospective on rural health and human services.
Date: 04/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Preventing Youth Suicide in Rural America: Recommendations to States
Discusses recommendations for state-level agencies to prevent and address suicide among rural youth. Covers data and surveillance, screening, gatekeeper training, and survivor issues.
Date: 04/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: State and Territorial Injury Prevention Directors Association, Suicide Prevention Resource Center
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2008
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Discussions of rural aspects of Medicare payment policies are included throughout the report.
Date: 03/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Implementing a New USDA Rural Development Program Targeting Small Rural Hospitals and Their Communities: Recommendations of the RUPRI Health Panel
Lists recommendations for implementing a new USDA Rural Development program, as included in the Senate Farm Bill proposal, should it be enacted into law. Discusses program goals to strengthen rural healthcare delivery systems, to provide necessary healthcare services to rural residents in a cost-effective manner.
Author(s): Andrew F. Coburn, A. Clinton MacKinney, Timothy D. McBride, et al.
Date: 03/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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Addressing Healthcare Workforce Issues for the Future: Hearing of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Provides the final transcript from a Senate committee hearing focused on the future supply of primary care providers. Includes statements, questions, and answers from senators, health workforce experts, and the Health Resources and Services Administration focusing on health care provider shortages in rural areas. Discusses policies intended to address these shortages.
Date: 02/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
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National Advisory Committee on Rural Health & Human Services Meeting Minutes, Washington, DC, February 20-22, 2008
Reports on a meeting of the National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services, part of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy. Meeting included the following topics: medical homes, serving at-risk children, and the health workforce.
Date: 02/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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