Colorado covers 103,718 square miles, with a 2019 estimated population of 5,758,736 people – 715,485 living in rural Colorado (USDA-ERS). Denver, the capital, is located in the north-central region of the state. Colorado's largest cities are Denver, Colorado Springs, Aurora, and Fort Collins. According to 2019 data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 86.9% of the state's population is white, 4.6% is African-American, 3.5% is Asian, 1.6% is American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.2% is Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and 21.8% is of Hispanic or Latino origin.

Colorado Rural Healthcare Facilities

According to data.HRSA.gov, as of January 2021 Colorado had:

• 32 Critical Access Hospitals
• 61 Rural Health Clinics
• 76 Federally Qualified Health Center sites located outside of Urbanized Areas
• 12 short term hospitals located outside of Urbanized Areas

Selected Social Determinants of Health for Rural Colorado

While most Coloradans have health insurance coverage, 7.8% remain uninsured (Kaiser, 2019). According to the USDA Economic Research Service, the average per capita income for Coloradans in 2019 was $61,157, with the rural per capita income at $54,932. The ERS reports, based on 2019 ACS data, that the poverty rate in rural Colorado is 12.7%, compared with 9.0% in urban areas of the state. 9.8% of the rural population has not completed high school, while 8.0% of the urban population lacks a high school diploma according to 2015-2019 ACS data reported by ERS. The unemployment rate in rural Colorado is 2.8%, while in urban Colorado, it is 2.7% (USDA-ERS, 2018).

Colorado Rural Health Center
Phone: 303.832.7493
Email: info@coruralhealth.org
Serves as the State Office of Rural Health (SORH) for Colorado. Offers members programs and services to ensure that rural communities have access to adequate healthcare.
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