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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Rural-urban differences

National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey: 2016 National Summary Tables
Provides data on outpatient visits to physician offices, with information on physician practice, patient, and visit characteristics. Tables 1, 13, 19, and 30 include data by metropolitan status for metro and nonmetro areas.
Date: 05/2019
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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Racial and Ethnic Minorities Made Up 22 Percent of the Rural Population in 2017 Compared to 42 Percent in Urban Areas
Two side-by-side pie charts showing the racial/ethnic composition of the rural population compared to the urban population in 2017. Categories listed are American Indian, Black, Hispanic, White, and other.
Date: 05/2019
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Rural/Urban and Regional Variation in the 2019 CMS Hospital Wage Index
Findings brief describing the geographic variation in the 2019 Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) hospital wage index by rural and urban definitions. Includes data comparisons for rural and urban definitions by Census region, frontier and remote (FAR) codes, and state.
Author(s): Kristie W. Thompson, Ann Howard, George H. Pink
Date: 05/2019
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Family Physicians' Contributions to Rural Emergency Care and Urban Urgent Care
Presents a study on the role of family physicians play in rural versus urban emergency departments. Compares rates in urban, large rural, small rural, and frontier facilities.
Author(s): Lars E. Peterson, James C. Puffer, Urooj Nasim, Stephen Petterson, Warren P. Newton
Citation: Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, 32(3), 295-296
Date: 05/2019
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Medicare Physician Payment Reform After Two Years: Examining MACRA Implementation and the Road Ahead
Provides a recording of a U.S. Senate Committee on Finance hearing on physician payment reforms under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA). Features testimonies about what is working well and challenges faced, including provisions and challenges for small and rural practices. Contains testimonies from the American Medical Association, American Academy of Family Physicians, American College of Surgeons, American Medical Group Association, and Brookings Institution.
Additional links: American Medical Association Testimony, John Cullen Testimony, Scott Hines Testimony
Date: 05/2019
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Finance
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State-Specific Severe Joint Pain and Physical Inactivity Among Adults with Arthritis — United States, 2017
Examines state-specific prevalence of arthritis and, among adults with arthritis, the prevalence of severe joint pain and of physical inactivity. Includes national data for metropolitan, micropolitan, and non-core counties.
Author(s): Dana Guglielmo, Louise B. Murphy, Michael A. Boring, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 68(17), 381-387
Date: 05/2019
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Drug Overdose Deaths Involving Cocaine and Psychostimulants with Abuse Potential — United States, 2003–2017
Reports age-adjusted death rates in 2016 and 2017 for cocaine and psychostimulants, with information by age group, sex, urbanization level, U.S. Census region, and state. Includes data for metropolitan, micropolitan, and non-core counties. Provides national-level trend data for 2003-2017 on deaths related to these substances that also involved opioids and that did not involve opioids.
Author(s): Mbabazi Kariisa, Lawrence Scholl, Nana Wilson, Puja Seth, Brooke Hoots
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 68(17), 388-395
Date: 05/2019
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Challenges and Opportunities for Lung Cancer Screening in Rural America
Examines 2015 data from the National Health Interview Survey to explore rural versus urban and geographic differences in low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening for lung cancer. Includes discussion on barriers to providing LDCT screening for rural populations.
Author(s): Cassie L. Odahowski, Whitney E. Zahnd, Jan M. Eberth
Citation: Journal of the American College of Radiology, 16(4), 590-595
Date: 04/2019
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A Geospatial Analysis of Distances to Hospitals That Admit Pediatric Asthma Patients
Study examining pediatric care concentration in urban areas of Florida and the impacts of regionalization on rural EMS operations, focusing on pediatric asthma exacerbations. Analyzes data from 11,226 EMS pediatric asthma encounters, tracking travel distance to admitting facilities using geospatial mapping, and comparing rural and urban EMS calls.
Author(s): Jennifer Fishe, Erik Finlay, Sam Palmer, Phyllis Hendry
Citation: Prehospital Emergency Care, 23(5), 882-886
Date: 04/2019
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Rural‐Urban Trends in Opioid Overdose Discharges in Missouri Emergency Departments, 2012‐2016
Study of opioid overdose cases treated by Missouri emergency departments from 2012-2016 that compares rural and urban rates. Analyzes billing data from the state's Patient Abstract System (PAS), including population information and type of opiate involved in the overdose over the data period. Discusses the role of non-heroin opioids in overdose rates and implications of observed trends for emergency departments.
Author(s): Whitney Coffey, Andrew Hunter, Evan Mobley, Alana Vivolo-Kantor
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 36(2), 177-186
Date: 04/2019
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