Rural Health
Resources by Type: Document
Value-Based Payments Are Catching On, but Rural and Small Practices Lag
Describes the current rates of primary care physician (PCP) participation in value-based payment. Includes data on the percent of primary care physicians in rural and small practices that reported receiving revenue from value-based payment in 2025. Discusses barriers and potential solutions to increasing PCP participation in value-based payment.
Author(s): Celli Horstman, Corrine Lewis
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Describes the current rates of primary care physician (PCP) participation in value-based payment. Includes data on the percent of primary care physicians in rural and small practices that reported receiving revenue from value-based payment in 2025. Discusses barriers and potential solutions to increasing PCP participation in value-based payment.
Author(s): Celli Horstman, Corrine Lewis
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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A Stubborn Problem: Unaffordable Health Costs Continue to Strain Californians' Finances
Examines healthcare affordability in California from 2019 to 2024, comparing pre-COVID-19 pandemic experiences to after the pandemic had subsided, alongside the implementation of related state and federal policy impacting affordability. Provides percentages of Californians who have trouble paying medical bills, who use credit cards to pay medical bills, who have private insurance with deductibles above $2,000, and more, according to coverage type, demographics, region, and rural versus urban location.
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: State Health Access Data Assistance Center
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Examines healthcare affordability in California from 2019 to 2024, comparing pre-COVID-19 pandemic experiences to after the pandemic had subsided, alongside the implementation of related state and federal policy impacting affordability. Provides percentages of Californians who have trouble paying medical bills, who use credit cards to pay medical bills, who have private insurance with deductibles above $2,000, and more, according to coverage type, demographics, region, and rural versus urban location.
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: State Health Access Data Assistance Center
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March 2026 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) March 2026 meeting. Covers research and proposals related to the Medicare ground ambulance data collection system, access to hospice and certain complex palliative services for beneficiaries with end-stage renal disease and beneficiaries with cancer, provider participation in Medicare Advantage (MA) networks, MA encounter data in risk adjustment, the complexity of Medicare enrollment decisions for beneficiaries, and Medicare Part B premium payment basics. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Additional links: Mandated Report: Assessment of the Medicare Ground Ambulance Data Collection System
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) March 2026 meeting. Covers research and proposals related to the Medicare ground ambulance data collection system, access to hospice and certain complex palliative services for beneficiaries with end-stage renal disease and beneficiaries with cancer, provider participation in Medicare Advantage (MA) networks, MA encounter data in risk adjustment, the complexity of Medicare enrollment decisions for beneficiaries, and Medicare Part B premium payment basics. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Additional links: Mandated Report: Assessment of the Medicare Ground Ambulance Data Collection System
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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West Virginia Rural Behavioral Health Workforce
Offers maps and tables of the supply and distribution of behavioral health clinicians in West Virginia in 2025. Includes county-level data and rural and urban comparisons.
Author(s): S.C. Woolcock, C.H.A. Andrilla, L.A. Garberson, J.M. Graves
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Offers maps and tables of the supply and distribution of behavioral health clinicians in West Virginia in 2025. Includes county-level data and rural and urban comparisons.
Author(s): S.C. Woolcock, C.H.A. Andrilla, L.A. Garberson, J.M. Graves
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Rural Health Transformation Program: State Focus on Aging
Describes aging-related initiatives addressed in state Rural Health Transformation Program applications.
Author(s): Ella Taggart
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: National Academy for State Health Policy
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Describes aging-related initiatives addressed in state Rural Health Transformation Program applications.
Author(s): Ella Taggart
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: National Academy for State Health Policy
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West Virginia Rural Obstetrical Workforce
Offers maps and tables of the obstetricians and advanced practice midwives workforce distribution in West Virginia in 2025. Includes county-level data and rural and urban comparisons.
Author(s): S.C. Woolcock, C.H.A. Andrilla, L.A. Garberson, J.M. Graves
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Offers maps and tables of the obstetricians and advanced practice midwives workforce distribution in West Virginia in 2025. Includes county-level data and rural and urban comparisons.
Author(s): S.C. Woolcock, C.H.A. Andrilla, L.A. Garberson, J.M. Graves
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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West Virginia Rural Primary Care Workforce
Offers maps and tables of the primary care workforce distribution in West Virginia in 2025. Includes county-level data and rural and urban comparisons.
Author(s): S.C. Woolcock, C.H.A. Andrilla, L.A. Garberson, J.M. Graves
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Offers maps and tables of the primary care workforce distribution in West Virginia in 2025. Includes county-level data and rural and urban comparisons.
Author(s): S.C. Woolcock, C.H.A. Andrilla, L.A. Garberson, J.M. Graves
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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State of North Carolina's Mental Health and Substance Use Services Workforce: Need, Supply, and Distribution Landscape Assessment
Provides an overview on need, supply, and distribution of behavioral health professionals in North Carolina. Includes county-level maps and data on workforce and behavioral health issues.
Author(s): Brianna Lombardi, Jennifer Headley, Monica P. Jimenez, et al.
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: The Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research
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Provides an overview on need, supply, and distribution of behavioral health professionals in North Carolina. Includes county-level maps and data on workforce and behavioral health issues.
Author(s): Brianna Lombardi, Jennifer Headley, Monica P. Jimenez, et al.
Date: 03/2026
Sponsoring organization: The Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research
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Understanding Risk Factors for Otitis Media in Rural Alaska Native Children: A Cohort Study
Presents a study on the relationship between otitis media, a middle ear disease associated with childhood hearing loss, and environmental, genetic, and dietary risk factors among children aged 1-4 in Alaska Native communities in the rural Bering Strait region of Alaska. Explores the presence of genetic factors that increase the likelihood of respiratory infections in newborns, rates of breastfeeding, and environmental factors, such as smoke exposure and availability of running water, among others.
Author(s): Rolvix H Patterson, Susan D Emmett, Kelli L Scheinman, et al.
Citation: Ear & Hearing, 47(2), 417-428
Date: 03/2026
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Presents a study on the relationship between otitis media, a middle ear disease associated with childhood hearing loss, and environmental, genetic, and dietary risk factors among children aged 1-4 in Alaska Native communities in the rural Bering Strait region of Alaska. Explores the presence of genetic factors that increase the likelihood of respiratory infections in newborns, rates of breastfeeding, and environmental factors, such as smoke exposure and availability of running water, among others.
Author(s): Rolvix H Patterson, Susan D Emmett, Kelli L Scheinman, et al.
Citation: Ear & Hearing, 47(2), 417-428
Date: 03/2026
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Assessing Environmental, Nutritional, and Genetic Factors for Otitis Media-Related Hearing Loss in Rural Alaska Native Children
Highlights a study on the relationship between otitis media, a middle ear disease associated with childhood hearing loss, and environmental, genetic, and dietary risk factors among children aged 1-4 in Alaska Native communities in the rural Norton Sound region of Alaska. Explores the presence of genetic factors that increase the likelihood of respiratory infections in newborns, rates of breastfeeding, and environmental factors, such as smoke exposure and availability of running water, among others.
Author(s): Samantha Kleindienst Robler, Alyssa Platt, Rolvix H Patterson, et al.
Citation: Ear & Hearing, 47(2), 404-416
Date: 03/2026
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Highlights a study on the relationship between otitis media, a middle ear disease associated with childhood hearing loss, and environmental, genetic, and dietary risk factors among children aged 1-4 in Alaska Native communities in the rural Norton Sound region of Alaska. Explores the presence of genetic factors that increase the likelihood of respiratory infections in newborns, rates of breastfeeding, and environmental factors, such as smoke exposure and availability of running water, among others.
Author(s): Samantha Kleindienst Robler, Alyssa Platt, Rolvix H Patterson, et al.
Citation: Ear & Hearing, 47(2), 404-416
Date: 03/2026
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