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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Health Services at Risk in "Vulnerable" Rural Places
Describes a method to identify vulnerable rural places at risk for not having adequate health care services. Reasons for community vulnerability discussed include sparse population, lack of sufficient people able to pay for care, and current level of services that population size and composition cannot support.
Author(s): Michael D. Shambaugh-Miller, Julie Stoner, Louis Pol, Keith Mueller
Citation: RUPRI Rural Policy Brief, 7(5)
Date: 10/2002
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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One Department Serving Rural America
Reports findings from a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) task force focused on improving healthcare and human services in rural communities. Describes health and social services challenges facing rural America, barriers to serving rural areas, and HHS-wide goals and strategies to address these concerns.
Author(s): HHS Rural Task Force
Date: 07/2002
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
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National Advisory Committee on Rural Health & Human Services Meeting Minutes, Tucson and Bisbee, Arizona, June 9-11, 2002
Minutes of a National Advisory Committee on Rural Health & Human Services meeting focused on health issues in the U.S.-Mexico Border region, including chronic disease, health services needs related to immigration, malpractice insurance costs, and lack of obstetric services.
Date: 06/2002
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Hospital Closure: 2000
Describes the extent, characteristics of, reasons for, and impact of hospital closures in 2000. Includes information specific to rural hospital closures. Lists closed hospitals and opened/reopened hospitals by name, state, and rural/urban status.
Date: 06/2002
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Office of Inspector General (HHS)
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A Targeted Look at the Rural Health Care Safety Net
Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Discusses the safety net, the web of professionals and institutions that provide care to the poor and uninsured regardless of ability of pay. Also covers key safety net programs under the purview of the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Its findings fall into three categories: ensuring access to hospital services, ensuring access to primary care, and maintaining an adequate workforce.
Date: 04/2002
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Access to Emergency Medical Services in Rural Areas: The Supporting Role of State EMS Agencies
Reports on a survey of state EMS directors regarding access to rural EMS, programs and initiatives by state EMS agencies that target rural and volunteer EMS providers, integration initiatives by rural EMS providers, issues in medical direction for rural EMS, and anticipated effects of the new Medicare fee schedule on rural EMS providers.
Author(s): Astrid Knott
Date: 02/2002
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
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Diabetes and the Rural Safety Net
Investigates the extent to which the rural safety net is able to meet the needs of people with diabetes. Includes case studies of four uninsured or underinsured rural New England residents with diabetes.
Author(s): David Hartley, Erika Ziller, Caroline Macdonald
Date: 01/2002
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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Health, United States, 2002: With Chartbook on Trends in the Health of Americans
Presents an annual overview of national trends in health statistics. Covers health status and determinants, healthcare utilization, access, and expenditures. Includes data on rural areas - see index under "metropolitan/nonmetropolitan data."
Date: 2002
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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Alaska Rural Health Plan
A guide to implement the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility Program in the state of Alaska providing information on the creation of rural health networks, the stabilization of rural hospitals, the accessibility and quality of healthcare services, and the process for the Critical Access Hospital (CAH) designation.
Date: 12/2001
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Alaska Department of Health
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National Advisory Committee on Rural Health & Human Services Meeting Minutes, Presque Isle, Maine, September 9-11, 2001
Minutes from a National Advisory Committee on Rural Health & Human Services meeting addressing the following topics: an update from the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy, a report being prepared on the rural safety net, federal emergency medical services (EMS) activity, and Maine EMS services.
Date: 09/2001
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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