Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Policy
MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2006
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Discussions of rural aspects of Medicare payment policies are included throughout the report.
Date: 03/2006
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Discussions of rural aspects of Medicare payment policies are included throughout the report.
Date: 03/2006
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Model Trauma System Planning and Evaluation
Designed to provide trauma care direction to trauma care professionals, including public health officials and health care policy experts, when developing and evaluating trauma systems.
Additional links: Trauma System Self-Assessment Supplemental Tool: Benchmarks, Indicators, and Scoring
Date: 02/2006
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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Designed to provide trauma care direction to trauma care professionals, including public health officials and health care policy experts, when developing and evaluating trauma systems.
Additional links: Trauma System Self-Assessment Supplemental Tool: Benchmarks, Indicators, and Scoring
Date: 02/2006
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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Hospital Quality Data: CMS Needs More Rigorous Methods to Ensure Reliability of Publicly Released Data
Describes how the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) collects hospital quality measures and ways the process could be improved to better ensure the accuracy of the data. Discusses how rural and urban hospital accuracy scores compare.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 02/2006
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Describes how the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) collects hospital quality measures and ways the process could be improved to better ensure the accuracy of the data. Discusses how rural and urban hospital accuracy scores compare.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 02/2006
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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The Institute of Medicine Rural Health Report: Next Steps in Legislation and Programs
Recommends federal policies that will improve patient safety and healthcare quality in rural America. Recommendations address innovative resource redirection and program coordination to increase the value of federal quality improvement programs and ultimately improve the health of rural people and communities.
Author(s): Keith J. Mueller, Andrew F. Coburn, A. Clinton MacKinney, et al.
Date: 02/2006
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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Recommends federal policies that will improve patient safety and healthcare quality in rural America. Recommendations address innovative resource redirection and program coordination to increase the value of federal quality improvement programs and ultimately improve the health of rural people and communities.
Author(s): Keith J. Mueller, Andrew F. Coburn, A. Clinton MacKinney, et al.
Date: 02/2006
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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The 2006 Report to the Secretary: Rural Health and Human Service Issues
Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on issues related to rural America. Examines three key topics: access to pharmaceuticals and pharmacy services, health information technology, and family caregiver support of the rural elderly.
Date: 01/2006
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on issues related to rural America. Examines three key topics: access to pharmaceuticals and pharmacy services, health information technology, and family caregiver support of the rural elderly.
Date: 01/2006
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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State Rural Initiatives: Where the Money Comes From
Discusses how states are financing rural programs, projects and initiatives. Includes descriptions of over 40 programs, projects, or initiatives that are statewide in scope. Includes examples of funding focused on rural health.
Date: 01/2006
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Discusses how states are financing rural programs, projects and initiatives. Includes descriptions of over 40 programs, projects, or initiatives that are statewide in scope. Includes examples of funding focused on rural health.
Date: 01/2006
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Rural and Frontier Mental and Behavioral Health Care: Barriers, Effective Policy Strategies, Best Practices
Reports on the mental health and substance abuse needs of people living in rural and frontier areas. Discusses barriers, model programs, policy strategies, and telehealth. Also addresses the role that State Offices of Rural Health and other state and local organizations can play in rural behavioral health service delivery.
Author(s): Donald Sawyer, John Gale, David Lambert
Date: 2006
Sponsoring organization: National Association for Rural Mental Health
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Reports on the mental health and substance abuse needs of people living in rural and frontier areas. Discusses barriers, model programs, policy strategies, and telehealth. Also addresses the role that State Offices of Rural Health and other state and local organizations can play in rural behavioral health service delivery.
Author(s): Donald Sawyer, John Gale, David Lambert
Date: 2006
Sponsoring organization: National Association for Rural Mental Health
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Trends in Skilled Nursing and Swing-bed Use in Rural Areas, 1996-2003
Examines trends in the delivery of skilled nursing facility (SNF) services in rural areas during a period of dramatic change in Medicare payments. Focuses on the role of rural hospitals in providing SNF services, as a number of regulatory changes occurred between 1998 and 2002 that could potentially influence hospital provision of skilled nursing care.
Author(s): Kathleen Dalton, Jeongyoung Park, Ann Howard, Rebecca Slifkin
Date: 12/2005
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Examines trends in the delivery of skilled nursing facility (SNF) services in rural areas during a period of dramatic change in Medicare payments. Focuses on the role of rural hospitals in providing SNF services, as a number of regulatory changes occurred between 1998 and 2002 that could potentially influence hospital provision of skilled nursing care.
Author(s): Kathleen Dalton, Jeongyoung Park, Ann Howard, Rebecca Slifkin
Date: 12/2005
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Revisions to Medicare's Disproportionate Share Payment Policy to Incorporate Bad Debt and Charity Care
Investigates the impact of possible changes to the Medicare disproportionate share (DSH) payment policy, designed to incorporate information on the hospital's uncompensated care burden as well as to improve the payment formula. These analyses are intended to help policymakers evaluate the likely impact of revising the DSH payment methodology.
Author(s): Julie A. Schoenman, Janet P. Sutton, Lan Zhao
Date: 09/2005
Sponsoring organization: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
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Investigates the impact of possible changes to the Medicare disproportionate share (DSH) payment policy, designed to incorporate information on the hospital's uncompensated care burden as well as to improve the payment formula. These analyses are intended to help policymakers evaluate the likely impact of revising the DSH payment methodology.
Author(s): Julie A. Schoenman, Janet P. Sutton, Lan Zhao
Date: 09/2005
Sponsoring organization: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
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Rural Research Needs and Data Sources for Selected Human Services Topics
Provides an overview of rural human services. Reviews the literature on work supports for low-income families, substance abuse, and child welfare services, and describes gaps in the research. Identifies 80 data sources that could be used to conduct research on human services topics in rural areas. Provides recommendations to improve the quality and quantity of information available on rural human services.
Additional links: Executive Summary, Research Summary, Volume 1: Research Needs, Volume 2: Data Sources
Date: 08/2005
Sponsoring organizations: HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Mathematica Policy Research
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Provides an overview of rural human services. Reviews the literature on work supports for low-income families, substance abuse, and child welfare services, and describes gaps in the research. Identifies 80 data sources that could be used to conduct research on human services topics in rural areas. Provides recommendations to improve the quality and quantity of information available on rural human services.
Additional links: Executive Summary, Research Summary, Volume 1: Research Needs, Volume 2: Data Sources
Date: 08/2005
Sponsoring organizations: HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Mathematica Policy Research
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