Alabama

Alabama covers 50,744 square miles, with a 2016 estimated population of 4,863,300 people - 1,156,502 of whom live in rural areas (USDA-ERS). The state capital is Montgomery and the largest cities are Birmingham, Montgomery, and Mobile. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 69.5% of the state’s population is white, 26.8% is Black/African-American, and 4.2% is of Hispanic/Latino origin (U.S. Census, 2015).

Alabama Rural Healthcare Facilities

There are 95 hospitals in Alabama (Kaiser, 2015), 4 of which are identified as Critical Access Hospitals (Flex Team, 2/2017). There are 105 Rural Health Clinics in Alabama (CMS, 2016) and 14 Federally Qualified Health Centers provide services at 129 sites in the state (NACHC, 2015).

Selected Social Determinants of Health for Rural Alabama

11% of Alabama residents lack health insurance (Kaiser, 2015). According to the USDA Economic Research Service, the average per-capita income for Alabama residents in 2015 was $38,030, although rural per-capita income lagged at $32,609. The ERS reports, based on 2015 ACS data, that the poverty rate in rural Alabama is 23.0%, compared with 17.1% in urban areas of the state. 21.5% of the rural population has not completed high school, while 13.9% of the urban population lacks a high school diploma according to 2011-2015 ACS data reported by ERS. The unemployment rate in rural Alabama is 6.6%, while in urban Alabama it is 5.8% (USDA-ERS, 2016).

Data Sources
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services: Rural Health Clinic List; Flex Monitoring Team: Critical Access Hospital List; Kaiser Family Foundation State Health Facts; National Association of Community Health Centers: Key Health Center Data By State; U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts; USDA Economic Research Service: State Fact Sheets

Contacts

There are more organizations related to Alabama in the organizations section.