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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Mental Health Care: Access Challenges for Covered Consumers and Relevant Federal Efforts
Explores the experiences of consumers with health insurance coverage in accessing timely and appropriate mental healthcare. Describes challenges accessing mental health services, including workforce shortages and broadband availability in rural areas. Identifies ongoing and planned federal efforts to address these challenges.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 03/2022
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Consequences of Structural Urbanism: Urban–Rural Differences in Cancer Patients' Use and Perceived Importance of Supportive Care Services from a 2017–2018 Midwestern Survey
Examines health disparities in supportive cancer care based on data from 326 rural and urban Midwestern cancer patients from November 2017 to May 2018. Includes participant data broken down by rurality, age, sex, race, marital status, insurance status, and related cancer diagnosis. Discusses closures of healthcare services and limited resources in rural areas and their impact on healthcare access for cancer patients.
Author(s): Marquita W. Lewis-Thames, Patricia Fank, Michelle Gates, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(6)
Date: 03/2022
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Veterans Health Care: Efforts to Hire Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselors and Marriage and Family Therapists
Describes efforts taken by the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) to promote the hiring of licensed professional mental health counselors (LPMHC) and marriage and family therapists (MFT) at Department of Veterans Affairs' facilities. Examines the extent to which VA medical facilities are employing LPMHCs and MFTs and how their recent employment compares with other mental health professions. Discusses considerations regarding the availability of LPMHCs and MFTs in rural communities.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 03/2022
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Rural Hospital Administrators' Beliefs About Safety, Financial Viability, and Community Need for Offering Obstetric Care
Examines beliefs about the financial viability and need for rural obstetric care based on surveys completed by 93 rural hospital administrators. Discusses the volume necessary to provide safe obstetric care, priorities related to local community need, and issues related to workforce and policy.
Author(s): Katy B. Kozhimannil, Julia D. Interrante, Lindsay K. Admon, Bridget L. Basile Ibrahim
Citation: JAMA Health Forum, 3(3), e220204
Date: 03/2022
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Use of Medication for Opioid Use Disorder Among US Adolescents and Adults With Need for Opioid Treatment, 2019
Results of a study to estimate use rates of medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) and to identify associations between MOUD and characteristics of people who may have needed treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD). Features statistics including characteristics of adolescents and adults with past-year OUD treatment need and likelihood of MOUD among adults who may have needed OUD treatment, with breakdowns by large metropolitan, small metropolitan, or nonmetropolitan location.
Author(s): Pia M. Mauro, Sarah Gutkind, Erin M. Annunziato, Hillary Samples
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 5(3)
Date: 03/2022
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Rural Imperatives in Broadband Adoption and Digital Inclusion
Report examining broadband adoption by age, race, educational attainment, and household income, and discussing strategies for rural providers to expand outreach and adoption efforts toward digital inclusion. Discusses the impact of rural demographics on broadband adoption, including a section on healthcare access and outcomes.
Author(s): Joshua Seidemann, Roxanna Barboza
Date: 03/2022
Sponsoring organization: NTCA: The Rural Broadband Association
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Rural Quality of Life: Opportunities and Challenges for the Rural Care Economy
Recording of a March 22, 2022, hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry on challenges and opportunities for the care economy in rural communities. Features testimony from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Undersecretary for Rural Development, the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center, and Southeast Health Group, a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) in rural La Junta, Colorado.
Additional links: Carrie Henning-Smith, University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center - Testimony, Joseph Carrica, Southeast Health Group - Testimony
Date: 03/2022
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
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VA Recommendations to the Asset and Infrastructure Review (AIR) Commission
Presents Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) recommendations to the Asset and Infrastructure Review (AIR) Commission to modernize and realign the VA health care system. Recommendations cover investing in the VA outpatient care infrastructure, enhancing care for veterans with complex needs, providing access to inpatient medical and surgical care, and strengthening the VA's ability to execute its education, research, and emergency preparedness missions. Volume I outlines the legislative history; the present and future of VA health care, including the access needs of rural veterans; the methodology used to conduct the market assessments; and a national summary of the recommendations. Volume II details the recommendations and is organized by the 18 Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs).
Additional links: Appendices, Volume I, Volume II
Date: 03/2022
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
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Federally Qualified Health Center Strategies for Coping with Hospital Closure: Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas (CHC/SEK)
Describes how the Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas (CHC/SEK), a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) took over two Mercy Hospital Fort Scott primary care clinics when the hospital closed in 2018. Explores CHC/SEK's response to the hospital's closure, the subsequent economic impact on the community, and lessons learned for rural FQHCs in similar situations.
Date: 03/2022
Sponsoring organization: Capital Link
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Health Status of New Mexico 2020
Slide deck providing regional and rural-urban comparisons of income, education level, healthcare coverage, health status, health behaviors, chronic conditions, substance use, mental health, and more based on various New Mexico Department of Health datasets.
Date: 03/2022
Sponsoring organization: New Mexico Department of Health
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