Colorado

Colorado covers 103,718 square miles, with a 2016 estimated population of 5,540,545 people – 702,784 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 the U.S. Census Bureau, 87.5% of the state’s population is white, 4.5% is African American/Black, 3.2% is Asian, 1.6% is American Indian and Alaska Native, and 21.3% is of Hispanic/Latino origin (U.S. Census, 2015).

Colorado Rural Healthcare Facilities

There are 81 hospitals in Colorado (Kaiser, 2015). Colorado has 29 hospitals identified as Critical Access Hospitals (Flex Team, 2/2017). There are 52 Rural Health Clinics in Colorado (CMS, 2016), and 20 Federally Qualified Health Centers provide services at 191 sites in the state (NACHC, 2015).

Selected Social Determinants of Health for Rural Colorado

While most Coloradans have health insurance coverage, 9% remain uninsured (Kaiser, 2015). According to the USDA Economic Research Service, the average per-capita income for Coloradans in 2015 was $50,899 although rural per-capita income lagged at $45,897. The ERS reports, based on 2015 ACS data, that the poverty rate in rural Colorado is 13.6%, compared with 11.2% in urban areas of the state. 11.1% of the rural population has not completed high school, while 9.0% of the urban population lacks a high school diploma according to 2011-2015 ACS data reported by ERS. The unemployment rate in rural Colorado is 3.5%, while in urban Colorado, it is 3.3% (USDA-ERS, 2016).

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

Contacts

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