West Virginia

West Virginia covers 24,078 square miles, with a 2019 estimated population of 1,792,147 people – with 682,651 people living in rural areas (USDA-ERS). Charleston is the state capital. The state's largest cities are Charleston, Huntington and Parkersburg. According to 2019 data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 93.5% of the state's population is white, 3.6% is African-American, 0.8% is Asian, 0.3% is American Indian or Alaska Native, and 1.7% is of Hispanic or Latino origin.

West Virginia Rural Healthcare Facilities

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

• 21 Critical Access Hospitals
• 59 Rural Health Clinics
• 254 Federally Qualified Health Center sites located outside of Urbanized Areas
• 10 short term hospitals located outside of Urbanized Areas

Selected Social Determinants of Health for Rural West Virginia

6.6% of West Virginia residents lack health insurance (Kaiser, 2019). According to the Economic Research Service, the average per capita income for West Virginia residents in 2019 was $42,315, with the rural per capita income at $38,358. The ERS reports, based on 2019 ACS data, that the poverty rate in rural West Virginia is 17.6%, compared with 16.3% in urban areas of the state. 15.5% of the rural population has not completed high school, while 11.6% of the urban population lacks a high school diploma according to 2015-2019 ACS data reported by ERS. The unemployment rate in rural West Virginia is 5.7%, while in urban West Virginia, it is 4.5% (USDA-ERS, 2019).

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 West Virginia in the organizations section.