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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Foundations' Efforts To Improve Rural Health Care
Highlights several rural-specific, foundation-funded projects that are working to address challenges associated with rural health and healthcare. Includes examples in the following problem areas: access, care delivery, publications, quality of care, and rural philanthropy.
Citation: Health Affairs, 36(11), 2023-2025
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
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Rural Transportation: Challenges and Opportunities
Policy brief discusses a study on the challenges of implementing rural transportation services and their implication on transportation policy. Analyzes infrastructure, geography, funding, accessibility, support and public awareness, and socio-demographics as barriers to rural transportation systems.
Author(s): Carrie Henning-Smith, Alex Evenson, Amanda Corbett, Katy Kozhimannil, Ira Moscovice
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
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Preventable Tooth Loss in Hawai'i: The Role of Socioeconomic Status, Diabetes, and Dental Visits
Results of a study examining association of tooth loss with health risk, dental care access, and sociodemographic factors including income level in 13,371 adults from 4 racial and ethnic groups in Hawaii. Features demographic statistics including breakdowns by residence in a city center, outside a city center, or a nonmetropolitan area.
Author(s): Mikako Deguchi, Marjorie K. Leimomi Mala Mau, James Davis, Richard Niederman
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 14
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
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The Share of Households With Wired Broadband Remains Below 60 Percent in Nearly 800 Rural Counties, Mostly in Poor and Remote Regions
Map identifying rural counties where 60% or more households had wired broadband in 2010 and 2016.
Date: 11/2017
Type: Map/Mapping System
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Racial/Ethnic Health Disparities Among Rural Adults — United States, 2012-2015
Reports on racial/ethnic health disparities among rural residents. Includes data by race/ethnicity for health-related quality of life, healthcare access and use, chronic health conditions, and health-related behaviors. Based on data from the 2012–2015 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.
Author(s): Cara V. James, Ramal Moonesinghe, Shondelle M. Wilson-Frederick, et al.
Citation: MMWR Surveillance Summaries, 66(23), 1-9
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Rural Health Care Services Outreach Program Supports Sustainable Change
Provides an overview of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy's Rural Health Care Services Outreach Program and the impact several grantees have made in their communities. Discusses how the grantees planned their projects with the goal of sustaining services after the grant funding ends.
Author(s): Jenn Lukens
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Rural Health Research Recap: Rural Behavioral Health
Summarizes key findings from the Rural Health Research Centers' most recent rural behavioral health projects. Discusses mental illness prevalence in rural areas, adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) among rural children, access to behavioral health services in rural communities, and rural behavioral health interventions. Provides links to each of the referenced source documents.
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Research Gateway
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The Share of SNAP Households That Live Far from a Supermarket or Large Grocery Store Varies by County
Map showing 2015 county-level data on the percent of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) households that lived far from the nearest supermarket or large grocery store, more than 1 mile in urban areas or more than 10 miles in rural areas.
Date: 11/2017
Type: Map/Mapping System
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Stepping into the Breach: How States and Insurers Worked Together to Prevent Bare Counties for 2018
Examines 6 states - Iowa, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Washington - that faced the prospect of having counties with no participating insurers ahead of the 2018 plan year open enrollment period. Shares insights from interviews with insurers and state regulators, focusing on how administrative and/or legislative actions and media coverage affected insurers' decisions to remain in the Marketplace. Includes a discussion on the challenges associated with risk assessment and rate setting in low-population, rural counties.
Author(s): Kevin Lucia, Jack Hoadley, Sabrina Corlette, Dania Palanker, Olivia Hoppe
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Urban Institute
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Health Matters: Navigating an Enhanced Rural Health Model for Maryland
Details a report on the findings of a study of Maryland's healthcare delivery system in 5 rural counties and looks at the availability of providers, vulnerable populations, barriers to access due to lack of transportation, and full and partial closures of healthcare facilities. Presents various rural healthcare models as potential options for Maryland.
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis, University of Maryland School of Public Health
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