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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Racial and ethnic groups

Fentanyl in Native Communities: Native Perspectives on Addressing the Growing Crisis
Recording of a November 8, 2023 hearing discussing fentanyl in both Native Hawaiian and American Indian and Alaska Native Communities. Features testimony from Lummi Nation, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians of North Dakota, Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Reservation, and representatives of the behavioral health and public health fields. Discusses the criminal justice system, behavioral health workforce shortages, health impacts of historical trauma, and more. Captions available within the video player.
Additional links: Dr. A. Aukahi Austin Seabury, Ph.D., I Ola Lāhui, Inc. - Testimony, Dr. Claradina Soto, Ph.D., Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California - Testimony, Mr. Eric M. Gettis, Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium - Testimony, The Honorable Bryce Kirk, Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck - Testimony, The Honorable Jamie S. Azure, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians of North Dakota - Testimony, The Honorable Tony Hillaire, Lummi Nation - Testimony
Date: 11/2023
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Indian Affairs
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Indian Health Service: Many Federal Facilities Are in Fair or Poor Condition and Better Data Are Needed on Medical Equipment
Examines the state of the Indian Health Service's (IHS) federally-operated medical facilities and equipment between January 2022 and November 2023. Describes IHS efforts to mitigate the negative effects aging facilities and equipment may have on patient care. Offers policy recommendations to the Director of IHS regarding equipment planning, acquisition, and management.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 11/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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A Catchment and Location-Allocation Analysis of Mammography Access in Delaware, US: Implications for Disparities in Geographic Access to Breast Cancer Screening
Examines breast cancer disparities and screening access in representative urban and rural counties in Delaware. Analyzes demographic makeup of population, availability of transportation, and sites for mammography and breast imaging. Includes maps of screening locations and travel times to available facility as well as recommendations for additional facilities in areas with geographic or racial screening disparities.
Author(s): Jessica L. Webster, Neal D. Goldstein, Jennifer P. Rowland, Catherine M. Tuite, Scott D. Siegel
Citation: Breast Cancer Research, 25, 137
Date: 11/2023
Type: Document
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Improving Maternity Care for Indigenous Populations
Podcast episode featuring a discussion with Tina Pattara-Lau, M.D., maternal and child health consultant with the Indian Health Service Office of Clinical and Preventive Services, and Johnna Nynas, M.D., obstetrics and gynecology specialist at Sanford Bemidji Medical Center. Describes common disparities and systemic barriers Indigenous people experience in maternity care and ways hospitals and healthcare organizations can address these challenges and provide culturally-focused care.
Date: 11/2023
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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National and State Level Estimates of WIC Eligibility and Program Reach in 2021, Final Report, Volume 1
Compares eligibility versus participation in Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) benefits in 2021 using Community Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement (CPS-ASEC), American Community Survey (ACS), and National Vital Statistics data. Discusses trends over time for infants and pregnant women as well as by breastfeeding status, race and ethnicity, Medicaid participation, urbanicity. Includes state and regional comparisons.
Additional links: Appendices, Volume 2, Summary
Author(s): Courtenay Kessler, Andrew Bryant, Kate Munkacsy, Kelsey Farson Gray
Date: 11/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: USDA Food and Nutrition Service
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CY 2024 Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment System Final Rule (CMS 1786-FC)
Fact sheet providing an overview of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) final rule regarding updates and changes to the Medicare payments for hospital outpatient and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) services for calendar year 2024. Summarizes provisions regarding changes to the community mental health centers (CMHC) Conditions of Participation (CoPs); payment for intensive outpatient program (IOP) services; payment methodology for Indian Health Service (IHS) and tribal facilities that convert to Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) status; the Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting (OQR), Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting (ASCQR), and Rural Emergency Hospital Quality Reporting (REHQR) Programs; and more.
Date: 11/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Gastrointestinal Cancer in American Indian and Alaska Native People
Provides information on incidence rates of various gastrointestinal (GI) cancers among non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaska Native (NH-AIAN) people with data broken down by sex and U.S. region.
Date: 11/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Failing Septic Systems in Lowndes County, Alabama: Citizen Participation, Science, and Community Knowledge
Discusses sanitation infrastructure access in predominantly Black, rural Lowndes County, Alabama. Provides data on household demographics, sewage treatment type and availability, home ownership, and more. Discusses barriers to septic system installation, health risks of sewage exposure, and the significance of health equity for underserved communities.
Author(s): Elizabeth A. Albright, Catherine Coleman Flowers, Randall A. Kramer, Erika S. Weinthal
Citation: Local Environment, 29(2), 135-142
Date: 10/2023
Type: Document
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Public Safety-Led Community-Oriented Overdose Prevention Efforts in Tribal Communities: Companion to the PS-COPE Toolkit
Toolkit supplement discusses community-based strategies for drug overdose prevention in tribal communities. Adapts PS-COPE framework to tribal communities social, cultural, and governing structures.
Additional links: PS-COPE Toolkit
Date: 10/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Council for Mental Wellbeing
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Human Immunodeficiency Virus Diagnosis and Care among Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Who Are Publicly Insured
Evaluates human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing, diagnosis, and care among adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, utilizing 2012 Medicare-Medicaid data. Identifies disparities related to ethnicity, geography, and more, including regional and rural/nonrural comparisons.
Author(s): T.G. James, M.S. Argenyi, A. Gravino, T.W. Benevides
Citation: Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 68(2), 150-163
Date: 10/2023
Type: Document
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