Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Rural definitions
Population Denominator Data Sources and Data for Use with HCUP Databases (Updated with 2021 Population Data)
Identifies sources of population data that can be used with Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) databases to calculate rates of hospital care events per population. Includes rural-urban population data sources. Appendix A, Tables A.6 and A.7 provide U.S. population figures from 2000 through 2021 for a 4-category urban-rural definition and a 6-category urban-rural definition.
Date: 2022
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
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Identifies sources of population data that can be used with Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) databases to calculate rates of hospital care events per population. Includes rural-urban population data sources. Appendix A, Tables A.6 and A.7 provide U.S. population figures from 2000 through 2021 for a 4-category urban-rural definition and a 6-category urban-rural definition.
Date: 2022
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
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Defining "Rural" for the Study on Human Services Programs in Rural Contexts
Report describing the impacts of rural definitions on research design and methods for a study of human services delivery in rural areas. Addresses U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, rural regions, and the limitations of certain definitions.
Author(s): Dallas Elgin, James Murdoch, Corianne Payton Scally, Heather Hahn
Date: 11/2021
Sponsoring organizations: 2M Research, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Urban Institute
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Report describing the impacts of rural definitions on research design and methods for a study of human services delivery in rural areas. Addresses U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, rural regions, and the limitations of certain definitions.
Author(s): Dallas Elgin, James Murdoch, Corianne Payton Scally, Heather Hahn
Date: 11/2021
Sponsoring organizations: 2M Research, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Urban Institute
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Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Designated Rural Health Areas in Oklahoma, 2021
County-level map of rural health areas in Oklahoma as designated by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP).
Date: 10/2021
Sponsoring organization: Oklahoma State University Center for Rural Health
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County-level map of rural health areas in Oklahoma as designated by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP).
Date: 10/2021
Sponsoring organization: Oklahoma State University Center for Rural Health
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List of Rural Counties and Designated Eligible Census Tracts in Metropolitan Counties
Identifies areas with geographic eligibility for Federal Office of Rural Health Policy grant programs. Lists rural counties, rural census tracts within metropolitan counties, and outlying metropolitan counties without an Urbanized Area.
Date: 09/2021
Sponsoring organization: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy
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Identifies areas with geographic eligibility for Federal Office of Rural Health Policy grant programs. Lists rural counties, rural census tracts within metropolitan counties, and outlying metropolitan counties without an Urbanized Area.
Date: 09/2021
Sponsoring organization: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy
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Wisconsin Rural Areas - Federal Office of Rural Health Policy
County-level map showing rural areas in Wisconsin as designated by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy. Includes a list of counties and census tracts considered rural.
Date: 07/2021
Sponsoring organization: Wisconsin Office of Rural Health
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County-level map showing rural areas in Wisconsin as designated by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy. Includes a list of counties and census tracts considered rural.
Date: 07/2021
Sponsoring organization: Wisconsin Office of Rural Health
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Comments on Proposed Criteria for Defining Urban Areas
Comment letter responding to the U.S. Census Bureau on proposed changes to criteria used to define urban areas. Discusses how the proposed changes could impact the delivery of healthcare services in rural communities, including potential implications on the certification of Rural Health Clinics.
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Comment letter responding to the U.S. Census Bureau on proposed changes to criteria used to define urban areas. Discusses how the proposed changes could impact the delivery of healthcare services in rural communities, including potential implications on the certification of Rural Health Clinics.
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Indicators of Rurality: How Should We Define "Rural" and "Urban" Communities?
Provides an overview of six federal datasets and how each is used to classify urban and rural communities. Offers recommendations for how to use each indicator of rurality.
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: Institute for People Place and Possibility
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Provides an overview of six federal datasets and how each is used to classify urban and rural communities. Offers recommendations for how to use each indicator of rurality.
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: Institute for People Place and Possibility
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Comment on Recommendations from the Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Area Standards Review Committee to Changes in Metropolitan and Micropolitan Area Standards
Offers comments in response to the Office of Management and Budget's proposed changes to the metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area standards. Discusses potential unintended consequences of the proposed changes and the broader implications of the definition of metropolitan on research and policy development.
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute
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Offers comments in response to the Office of Management and Budget's proposed changes to the metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area standards. Discusses potential unintended consequences of the proposed changes and the broader implications of the definition of metropolitan on research and policy development.
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute
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Redefining Rural: Towards a Better Understanding of Geography, Demography, and Economy in America's Rural Places
Offers a hybrid definition of rurality based on metro and non-metro definitions from the Office of Management and Budget, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, and considers outlying communities in metro and micropolitan counties as rural. Compares rural and non-rural poverty rates, economic well-being, population changes, and other characteristics to represent counties in economic distress.
Author(s): Kennedy O'Dell
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: Economic Innovation Group
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Offers a hybrid definition of rurality based on metro and non-metro definitions from the Office of Management and Budget, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, and considers outlying communities in metro and micropolitan counties as rural. Compares rural and non-rural poverty rates, economic well-being, population changes, and other characteristics to represent counties in economic distress.
Author(s): Kennedy O'Dell
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: Economic Innovation Group
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Determining Rural Communities: Current Changes and Updated Federal Program Eligibility
Presentation slides from a March 11, 2021, webinar discussing the various definitions of rural used by the federal government. Provides an overview of revisions to the eligibility for grant programs administered by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP), as well as a proposal from the U.S. Census Bureau to reclassify certain counties as rural. Describes implications for FORHP funding programs.
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organizations: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy, National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health
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Presentation slides from a March 11, 2021, webinar discussing the various definitions of rural used by the federal government. Provides an overview of revisions to the eligibility for grant programs administered by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP), as well as a proposal from the U.S. Census Bureau to reclassify certain counties as rural. Describes implications for FORHP funding programs.
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organizations: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy, National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health
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