Texas

Texas covers 261,797 square miles, with a 2017 estimated population of 28,304,596 people – 3,061,090 living in rural Texas (USDA-ERS). It ranks second among U.S. states in both area and population. Austin, the capital, is located in the south-central region of the state. The state’s largest cities are Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas. According to 2017 data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 79.2% of the state’s population is white, 12.7% is African-American, 5.0% is Asian, 1.0% is American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.1% is Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and 39.4% is of Hispanic or Latino origin.

Texas Rural Healthcare Facilities

According to data.HRSA.gov, as of January 2019 Texas had:

• 85 Critical Access Hospitals
• 299 Rural Health Clinics
• 197 Federally Qualified Health Center sites located outside of Urbanized Areas
• 135 short term hospitals located outside of Urbanized Areas

Selected Social Determinants of Health for Rural Texas

17% of Texas residents lack health insurance (Kaiser, 2017). According to the USDA Economic Research Service, the average per capita income for Texans in 2016 was $46,274, although rural per capita income lagged at $37,629. The ERS reports, based on 2017 ACS data, that the poverty rate in rural Texas is 17.6%, compared with 14.4% in urban areas of the state. 21.5% of the rural population has not completed high school, while 17.1% of the urban population lacks a high school diploma according to 2012-2016 ACS data reported by ERS. The unemployment rate in rural Texas is 4.8%, and in urban Texas it is 4.2% (USDA-ERS, 2017).

Data Sources
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 Texas in the organizations section.