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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Policy

Medicaid Managed Behavioral Health in Rural Areas
Reports on state implementation of Medicaid managed behavioral health (MMBH) programs in rural areas. Describes these programs in terms of Medicaid populations served, program design, and implementation model. Describe the experience of programs regarding access to and coordination of services.
Additional links: Research and Policy Brief: Medicaid Managed Behavioral Health Programs in Rural Areas, August 2001
Author(s): David Lambert, John Gale, Donna Bird, David Hartley
Date: 01/2001
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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A Rural Government Role in Medicaid Managed Care: The Development of County-based Purchasing in Minnesota
Describes the development and implementation in Minnesota of a model for rural county government participation in Medicaid managed care initiatives.
Author(s): Astrid Knott, Jon B. Christianson
Date: 01/2001
Sponsoring organization: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
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Key Rural Issues for Medicare Reform, 2001
Brief overview of rural issues related to Medicare reform. Discusses the need for rural representation and adequate payments to ensure healthcare access.
Date: 2001
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Rural Hospital Wages and the Area Wage Index: 1990-1997
Examines whether incremental changes to the hospital wage index from 1990-1997 made it more fair across regions and how these changes impacted rural hospitals.
Additional links: Findings Brief, January 2001
Author(s): Kathleen Dalton, Rebecca Slifkin, Hilda Howard
Date: 11/2000
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Redesigning the Medicare Program: An Opportunity to Improve Rural Health Care Systems?
Presents a framework for use by those interested in the future of healthcare services in rural areas, to help to shape proposals to redesign the Medicare program. Identifies rural principles that should guide any Medicare redesign effort.
Author(s): Andrew F. Coburn, Charles W. Fluharty, J. Patrick Hart, et al.
Date: 08/2000
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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Calculating and Using the Area Wage Index of the Medicare Inpatient Hospital Prospective Payment System
Explains how the area wage index (AWI) was developed to adjust Medicare payments to hospitals based on average hospital wages in an area. Identifies the major unresolved issues related to its calculation and use in the year 2000.
Author(s): Anthony Wellever
Citation: RUPRI Rural Policy Brief, 5(5)
Date: 06/2000
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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Rural Public Health: Issues and Considerations
Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Overview of the rural public health infrastructure. Addresses public health leadership, workforce preparedness, support for safety net providers, the impact of managed care, telecommunications, and funding for rural public health.
Date: 02/2000
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Rural Health in the United States
A comprehensive review of the health status and healthcare resources of the rural areas of the United States. Updates the book, "Health Care in Rural America", published by the Office of Technology Assessment in 1990. Preview available via Google Books.
Author(s): Thomas C. Ricketts, III (editor)
Date: 1999
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Physician Distribution and Health Care Challenges in Rural and Inner-City Areas
In-depth review of the geographic maldistribution of physicians. Discusses issues that impact rural physician supply. Includes policy recommendations to improve the geographic distribution of physicians and address rural physician shortages.
Date: 02/1998
Sponsoring organization: Council on Graduate Medical Education
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Pacific Partnerships for Health: Charting a New Course
Provides an overview of health care services in the U.S. Associated Pacific Basin and discusses the U.S. role in the region's health care delivery systems.
Additional links: Read Online
Date: 1998
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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