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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Understanding the Value of the Medicaid Non-Emergency Medical Transportation Benefit
Presents findings from a focus group of 41 Medicaid enrollees in six states who have either used the non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) benefit or are caring for a Medicaid beneficiary who has used the benefit. Describes the transportation barriers focus group participants face, their health care needs and the services they use NEMT to access, their experiences using NEMT, and suggestions for improving the benefit. Includes perspectives from rural beneficiaries.
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organizations: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, PerryUndem
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System, June 2021
Evaluates Medicare payment issues and offers recommendations to the U.S. Congress. Chapter 5 presents an interim report on Medicare beneficiaries' access to care in rural areas. Also includes chapters on Medicare Advantage benchmark policy, alternative payment models, private equity and Medicare, the skilled nursing facility value-based purchasing program, indirect medical education payments, Medicare coverage of vaccines, separately payable drugs in the hospital outpatient prospective payment system, clinical laboratory fee schedule payment rates, and the relationship between clinician services and other Medicare services.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Report to Congress on Medicaid and CHIP, June 2021
Semi-annual report to Congress from the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC). Discusses high-cost specialty drugs in the Medicaid program, access to mental health services for those enrolled in Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), integration of physical and behavioral health care through electronic health records (EHRs), Medicaid's non-emergency transportation (NEMT) benefit, and state strategies for integrating care for people who are dually eligible for Medicaid and Medicare. Includes rural references throughout.
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission
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Poverty and Access to Internet, by County
Data visualization representing internet access via computers and smartphones, broadband access, and percentage of individuals in poverty at the county level.
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
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Faith in Recovery Coalition Offers Hope for Opioid Use Disorder in Fayette County, Ohio
Highlights the Pathways to Recovery program, which works to address opioid use disorder in rural Ohio. Efforts include educating providers and law enforcement, overdose prevention, harm reduction, and recovery support from Peer Support Specialists.
Author(s): Kathryn Rutz
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Mobile Technology and Home Broadband 2021
Discusses results of a survey on broadband access and smartphone ownership. Presents data by sociodemographic characteristics, including rural/urban residence. Addresses internet connection issues, smartphone dependence, and cost issues.
Author(s): Andrew Perrin
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Pew Research Center
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Hospital Capabilities to Enable Patient Electronic Access to Health Information, 2019
Reports on the percentage of U.S. hospitals that provide patients with electronic access to health information. Includes charts comparing types of electronic access; facility type including Critical Access, rural, and suburban-urban hospitals; and what types of information patients access.
Author(s): Christian Johnson, Wesley Barker
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
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The Food Retail Landscape Across Rural America
Examines changing food retailer trends from 1990 to 2015 in rural areas, discussing food access issues, economic challenges, and health impacts. Provides county-level maps indicating numbers of food retailers and grocery stores, and compares store types and numbers of food retailers for rural, nonmetro large urban, and nonmetro small urban counties.
Author(s): Alexander Stevens, Clare Cho, Metin Cakir, Xiangwen Kong, Michael Boland
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Overview of the Universal Service Fund and Selected Federal Broadband Programs
Provides an overview of federal programs supporting broadband deployment. Highlights programs established in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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VA Community Care: Understanding Veterans' Access, Utilization, and Satisfaction
Supplemental journal features a wide variety articles pertaining to veterans' access to care, utilization, and the VA's Community Care Network (CCN). Discusses the CCN's relationship with the MISSION Act, telehealth, and challenges facing rural veterans, among other issues.
Citation: Medical Care, 59, (6, Suppl 3)
Date: 06/2021
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