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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Rural-urban differences

Insurer Participation in Rural Health Insurance Marketplaces: Are Some Markets Intrinsically More Competitive Than Others?
Policy position brief reporting on analyses of insurer participation data in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, Medicare Advantage, and Health Insurance Marketplaces (HIMs). Assesses to what extent participation in HIMs may be associated with prior levels of local market competition. Includes statistics on prior market competition in low-population-density counties in 2014 and 2017, and county characteristics associated with low insurer participation, with comparisons between metro and nonmetro counties.
Author(s): Abigail R. Barker, Timothy D. McBride, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System, June 2019
Evaluates Medicare payment issues and offers recommendations to the U.S. Congress. Includes a chapter on access to primary care for Medicare beneficiaries that addresses rural access to care and programs supporting it, such as the National Health Service Corps. Other sections of the report addressing rural concerns focus on Medicare enrollment, changes in hospice and post-acute care after implementing the long-term care hospital dual payment-rate structure, and Medicare fee-for-service spending for emergency department services.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Cost-Sharing as a Barrier to Accessing Care at FQHCs and RHCs for Rural Medicare Beneficiaries
Results of a national study investigating cost barriers, using data acquired after enactment of the Affordable Care Act and viewed from perspectives other than ambulatory care sensitive hospitalizations. Features statistics including descriptive data of Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) from the study sample, with breakdowns by rural and urban location.
Author(s): Alex R. Schulte, George H. Pink, Mark Holmes, Denise Kirk
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Trends in Meeting Physical Activity Guidelines Among Urban and Rural Dwelling Adults — United States, 2008–2017
Reports on how many adults aged 18 years and older are meeting physical activity guidelines in urban and rural areas. Includes rural/urban data by sex, age group, race/ethnicity, education level, and Census region.
Author(s): Geoffrey P. Whitfield, Susan A. Carlson, Emily N. Ussery, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 68(23), 513-518
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Measuring Access to Care in National Surveys: Implications for Rural Health
Policy position brief reviewing access measures used in major national surveys and discussing implications for rural research on access to care. Features tables showing surveys, populations studied, and geographic measures; example survey questions for each access domain; and access to care measures in nationally-representative surveys.
Author(s): Carrie Henning-Smith, Ashley M. Hernandez, Hannah Neprash, Megan Lahr
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
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Life and Breath: How Air Pollution Affects Health in Minnesota
Provides a report and data on the health impacts of pollution in Minnesota. Discusses sources of air pollution; health impacts attributable to pollution; and differences in impacts by rural/urban location, poverty rate, health insurance coverage, and race/ethnicity. Includes maps with county-level data on air pollution health-related events.
Additional links: Full Report, Mapping the Data
Author(s): David Bael, Kathy Raleigh
Date: 06/2019
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Minnesota Department of Health
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Binge Drinking and Prescription Opioid Misuse in the U.S., 2012-2014
Explores the relationship between binge drinking and opioid misuse. Analyzes data from the 2012-2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health and presents data by age, race, and rural versus urban status, among other measures.
Author(s): Marissa B. Esser, Gery P. Guy Jr., Kun Zhang, et al.
Citation: American Journal of Preventive Medicine
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
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Mapping the Food Landscape in New Hampshire
Examines access to food and food support in New Hampshire at a census tract level. Covers farm and non-farm retail food sources, retail sites that accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Special Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), food support sites such as the National School Lunch Program, and food pantries. Identifies less densely populated areas and areas with more people in poverty and discusses some issues specific to rural areas of the state.
Author(s): Jessica A. Carson
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Carsey School of Public Policy
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Unmet Need for Personal Care Assistance among Rural and Urban Older Adults
Policy brief exploring the unmet need for personal care help across 11 activities, such as self-care, household chores, and mobility-related tasks, with breakdowns by urban and rural location.
Author(s): Carrie Henning-Smith, Zhengtian Wu, Megan Lahr
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
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Analysis of Obesity Rates for School Children in Pennsylvania
Report details an analysis of child obesity in Pennsylvania. Compares rural and urban rates by year and considers family demographics, such as occupation, household income, insurance coverage, among other factors.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Center for Rural Pennsylvania
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