What is Rural? – Resources

USAC Rural Health Care Eligible Rural Areas Search
Determines if an organization is located in an eligible rural area for Universal Service Administrative Company's (USACs) Rural Health Care Program. Identifies a county by urban, rural or partly rural status as defined by the program rules.
Type: Tool
Sponsoring organization: Universal Service Administrative Company
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Medicare Telehealth Payment Eligibility Analyzer
Determines geographic eligibility for Medicare telehealth services. Identifies Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) located in rural census tracts, consistent with the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy's definition of rural.
Type: Tool
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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What is Frontier?
Describes all of the major definitions of frontier and remote areas currently in use.
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Frontier Communities
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Rural Classifications
Describes several classifications and data measures useful in determining rurality in detail and in assessing the economic and social diversity of rural America, as required for eligibility in Federal programs assisting rural areas.
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Frontier and Remote Area Codes: Data Set
Provides access to zip code-level frontier and remote area (FAR) codes to meet the need for delineation that is geographically detailed and adjustable for applications in diverse research and policy contexts.
Type: Database
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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CMS Regional Office Rural Health Coordinators
The list of CMS regional rural health coordinators who provide technical, policy, and operational assistance on rural health issues. Located below information on Rural Health Open Door Forums and Medicare Learning Network publications.
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Atlas of Rural and Small-Town America
Illustrates a broad range of demographic, economic, and county classification data on rural areas across the U.S. in an online, interactive mapping tool.
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Rural Health Grants Eligibility Analyzer
Determines if a community is rural according to the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy's (FORHP) definition.
Type: Tool
Sponsoring organization: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy
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Am I Rural?
Helps determine whether a specific location is considered rural based on various definitions of rural, including definitions that are used as eligibility criteria for federal programs. Definitions covered include Rural Urban Commuting Areas (RUCAs), Core Based Statistical Areas, Rural Urban Continuum Codes (RUCC), and Urban Influence Codes (UICs).
Type: Tool
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Rural-Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) Codes
A list of rural-urban commuting area (RUCA) code data sets, including RUCA codes by ZIP code. RUCA codes classify U.S. census tracts using measures of population density, urbanization, and daily commuting. The most recent RUCA codes are based on data from the 2010 decennial census and the 2006-10 American Community Survey decennial census.
Type: Database
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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