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Rural Health
Resources by Type: Document

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Smoking Status — United States, 2017
Examines age-adjusted prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) among current smokers, former smokers, and those who have never smoked. Includes data by urban-rural location.
Author(s): Anne G. Wheaton, Yong Liu, Janet B. Croft, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 68(24), 533-538
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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In Support of Family Caregivers: A Snapshot of Five States
Examines policies developed in Washington State, Minnesota, Hawaii, Tennessee, and Maine to support family caregivers, including those in rural areas. Features demographic characteristics of the states profiled, state expenditures by the Administration for Community Living in FY2016 on older adults and caregivers, and data on state Medicaid policies affecting these groups.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Author(s): Jennifer Aufill, Julia Burgdorf, Jennifer Wolff
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Milbank Memorial Fund, The John A. Hartford Foundation
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Serving Rural America: How Health Insurance Providers Break Down Barriers to Ensure Access to Care
Highlights healthcare challenges in the rural U.S. and provides examples of how health insurance providers have helped address those challenges through telehealth, remote patient monitoring, incentives for rural providers, payment models, and targeting the opioid epidemic. Offers recommendations for state and federal policymakers related to rural recruitment, telehealth, insurance affordability, and population health.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: AHIP
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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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Healthcare System Readiness Measurement Framework
Offers an all-hazards measurement framework to help healthcare systems evaluate their readiness to respond to disasters and emergencies. The framework was developed to cover mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery at the request of the Department of Health and Human Services. Includes some considerations specific to rural areas.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Quality Forum
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the Skilled Nursing Facility PPS for FY 2020
Comments on an April 25, 2019, Federal Register proposed rule updating payments for Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs) and SNF quality reporting. Addresses proposed changes to the wage index system that would adjust for geographical differences, potentially impacting rural areas.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on Hospice for FY 2020
Comments on an April 25, 2019, Federal Register proposed rule updating payments for hospice and hospice quality reporting. Addresses proposed changes to the wage index system that would adjust for geographical differences, potentially impacting rural areas.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility PPS for FY 2020
Comments on an April 24, 2019, Federal Register proposed rule updating payments for Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities (IRFs) and IRF quality reporting. Addresses proposed changes to the wage index system that would adjust for geographical differences, potentially impacting rural areas.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Case Study: New England
Results of a field study focused on two rural funding organizations in Maine and New Hampshire, documenting how philanthropy and community can work together to support rural vitality. Part of the Rural Philanthropic Analysis series.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Campbell University Office of Rural Philanthropic 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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