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Rural Health
Resources by Type: Document

More than One in Five Adults with Limited Public Transit Access Forgo Health Care Because of Transportation Barriers
Provides information on adults who have foregone healthcare due to lack of transportation. Analyzes June 2022 data from the Urban Institute's Health Reform Monitoring Survey (HRMS) on healthcare access, missed appointments, and access to vehicles, with data broken down by demographics, disability status, health insurance coverage, and rural versus urban residence.
Author(s): Laura Barrie Smith, Michael Karpman, Dulce Gonzalez, Sarah Morriss
Date: 04/2023
Sponsoring organizations: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Urban Institute
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Assessing the Accuracy of California County Level COVID-19 Hospitalization Forecasts to Inform Public Policy Decision Making
Evaluates model performance and accuracy regarding the forecasting of infectious diseases by retroactively examining COVID-19 forecasting in California counties. Utilizes archived forecasts from the California Department of Public Health's California COVID Assessment Tool to analyze the accuracy of forecasts referenced with actual COVID-19 hospitalization. Discusses issues related to model accuracy, such as local transmission trends, variant prevalence, and county population size, and how accurate forecasting is important for public health planning and policy.
Author(s): Lauren A. White, Ryan McCorvie, David Crow, Seema Jain, Tomás M. León
Citation: BMC Public Health 23, 782
Date: 04/2023
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Landscape of the Health Informatics Workforce: Rapid Response Brief
Focuses on the clinical informatics and public health, population health, and social service informatics subdomains of the health informatics workforce. Mentions resource hubs that serve rural communities by providing guidelines, toolkits, screening tools, and other resources. Examines social determinants of health and gives examples of clinical informatics work that can improve access to care for rural and underserved populations. Features statistics on physicians certified in clinical informatics from 2013-2022.
Author(s): Cynthia LeRouge, Shahida Shahrir, Bianca K. Frogner
Date: 04/2023
Sponsoring organization: Center for Health Workforce Studies
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Mapping a New Terrain: 5 Principles for Equitable Rural Outdoor Recreational Economies
Offers suggestions for rural communities and Native nations looking at ways to improve economic prosperity, and population health and well-being through the development of natural assets and rural outdoor recreation. Topics cover ownership and control of recreation assets, building a resilient infrastructure, coordinating assets and stakeholder engagement, respect for the landscape, people and culture during the development process, and designing for equitable access and participation for all residents. Includes recommendations for community organizations, local government, and philanthropic organizations.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Date: 04/2023
Sponsoring organizations: Aspen Institute, Community Strategies Group
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Closed, Converted, Merged, and New Hospitals with Medicare Rural Designations: January 2018-November 2022
Provides an overview of four Medicare rural hospital designations - Critical Access Hospital, Low-Volume Hospital, Medicare Dependent Hospital, and Sole Community Hospital - and factors related to financial distress that these designations are intended to address. Explores the number of rural-designated hospitals that have closed, merged, converted, or opened between January 2018-November 2022 and compares the number of rural-designated hospitals with the number of non-designated hospitals. Outlines considerations for Congress regarding policy options for rural hospitals and access to healthcare services in rural areas.
Date: 04/2023
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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The State of Senior Hunger in America in 2021: An Annual Report
Discusses food insecurity rates among Americans age 60 or older. Includes demographics and characteristics of seniors lacking sufficient access to food, and provides trends and state-level information on food insecurity. Features data breakdowns by metropolitan and nonmetropolitan settings.
Author(s): James P. Ziliak, Craig Gundersen
Date: 04/2023
Sponsoring organization: Feeding America
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Hunger Among Adults Age 50-59 in 2021: An Annual Report
Reports on the extent, distribution, and trends of food insecurity among U.S. residents ages 50-59. Features state-level estimates and data breakdowns on food insecurity by income, race/ethnicity, metropolitan versus nonmetropolitan location, sex, and more.
Author(s): Craig Gundersen, James P. Ziliak
Date: 04/2023
Sponsoring organization: Feeding America
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Broadband Speed: FCC Should Improve Its Communication of Advanced Telecommunications Capability Assessments
Examines the extent to which Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has communicated how it reviews, and determines whether to update, the broadband upload and download speed benchmark. Describes how the minimum speed requirements of selected federal and state broadband programs differ from FCC's benchmark and stakeholders' views on the implications of these differences.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 04/2023
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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The Opioid Crisis: Impact on Native American Communities
Describes the opioid crisis impact on Non-Hispanic Native American communities since 2000. Compares deaths for Native Americans with the general U.S. population and the general New Mexican population. Also shows impact of different types of opioids and deaths for Non-Hispanic Native Americans by sex and age in 2021 as well as drug use among Native American high school students in New Mexico in 2021 by drug type.
Date: 04/2023
Sponsoring organization: Albuquerque Area Southwest Tribal Epidemiology Center
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Association of Rurality and Identifying as Black with Receipt of Specialty Care Among Patients Hospitalized with a Diabetic Foot Ulcer: A Medicare Cohort Study
Examines if rural, Black patients with diabetes receive specialty care at the same rate as the larger, aggregated population of diabetes patients. Analyzes 124,487 Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized with diabetic foot ulcers from 2013 to 2014. Includes data broken down by rural versus urban, race/ethnicity, and characteristics and severity of disease.
Author(s): Lindsay Taylor, Ronald Gangnon, W. Ryan Powell, et al.
Citation: BMJ Open Diabetes Research & Care, 11(2), e003185
Date: 04/2023
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