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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Chartis Center for Rural Health Research & Resources for the 2025 National Rural Health Association's Rural Health Policy Institute Conference
Offers research and analysis of the stability of the rural healthcare safety net. Includes Instability Continues to Threaten Rural Health Safety Net: Reduced Reimbursements, Dwindling Access to Care, and Deteriorating Population Health Status, and presentation slides on this report from the 2025 National Rural Health Association Policy Institute. Provides links to national and state data tables showing the financial impact of federal policies on rural hospitals.
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Chartis Center for Rural Health
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Impact of Rural School-Based Health Centers on Asthma Management
Examines preventive asthma care for rural students who have access to school-based health centers (SBHCs). Analyzes SBHCs in upstate New York and healthcare encounters related to asthma. Discusses disparities in asthma care for rural students who have access to an SBHC versus those who do not.
Author(s): Wendy M. Brunner, Zhuang Han, Sharon Tennyson, et al.
Citation: The Journal of Pediatrics, 277, 114385
Date: 02/2025
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Instability Continues to Threaten Rural Health Safety Net: Reduced Reimbursements, Dwindling Access to Care and Deteriorating Population Health Status
Examines factors contributing to the instability of the rural healthcare safety net, including policy-related reimbursement cuts and changes to payer mixes. Presents data on rural hospitals that have stopped offering obstetrics and chemotherapy services. Explores aspects of rural population health and social drivers of health as they relate to rural healthcare delivery challenges.
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Chartis Center for Rural Health
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Trends in Travel Time to Obtain Surgical Care for Rural Patients
Research letter analyzing travel time to surgical care in rural areas between 2010 and 2020, utilizing Medicare Provider Analysis and Review data. Includes data comparing annual change by surgical procedure type among rural and nonrural beneficiaries.
Author(s): Cody Lendon Mullens, Reagan A. Collins, Nicholas Kunnath, Janice C. Probst, Andrew M. Ibrahim
Citation: JAMA
Date: 02/2025
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Peer-Assisted Telemedicine Hepatitis-C Treatment for People Who Use Drugs in Rural Communities: A Mixed Methods Study
Examines the Oregon HOPE TeleHCV study, which provided peer-facilitated telemedicine hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment for people who use drugs (PWUD) in rural Oregon. Utilizes survey and interview data provided by patients and clinicians to identify effective strategies for building trust and reducing barriers to treatment at the systems, clinical, and peer levels.
Author(s): Kim Hoffman, Gillian Leichtling, Sarah Shin, et al.
Citation: Addiction Science & Clinical Practice, 20, 10
Date: 02/2025
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Trends in Emergency Department, Primary Care, and Behavioral Health Use for Pediatric Mental Health Conditions in Virginia Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Examines the relationship between access to primary and behavioral care and pediatric emergency department (ED) visits. Utilizes 2016-2021 data from the Virginia All-Payers Claims Database to analyze pediatric ED visits, mental health ED visits, ED visits for suicidality, and 2016 versus 2021 ED visits by various sociodemographic factors, including rural location.
Author(s): Jennifer L. Gilbert, Bergen B. Nelson, Jacqueline Britz, et al.
Citation: BMC Primary Care, 26, 54
Date: 02/2025
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Exploring Access to Critical Health Services for Older Adults in Rural America from 1990 to 2020
Analyzes Area Health Resource Files to evaluate access to healthcare facilities and services between 1990 and 2020 using Rural-Urban Continuum Codes (RUCC). Discusses healthcare access disparities between urban and rural areas and the growth of the older adult population in rural communities.
Author(s): Elizabeth A. Bambury, Alexis A. Merdjanoff, Joshua T. Fergen, J. Tom Mueller
Citation: The Journal of Rural Health, 41(1), e70004
Date: 02/2025
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State Legislatures Moving to Increase Rural Health Care Access
Discusses policy measures and potential impacts on rural healthcare access at the state level related to Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) payment, telehealth, and other financial supports for the rural health workforce.
Author(s): Lana McKinney
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
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Future Directions for Rural Population Research to Inform Extension: Listening Sessions Findings
A recorded webinar that discusses rural populations and issues important to them, such as food systems, community development, natural resources, healthcare access, disability services, and more. Transcript available below description.
Author(s): John J. Green, Katherine Curtis, Kristina Brant, Sreedhar Upendram, Paige Kelly
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: North Central Regional Center for Rural Development
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What's Going on in Greater Minnesota? – Accessing Youth Mental Health in Rural Minnesota
A recorded webinar that discusses the research report, Youth Mental Health: Where Rural Families Can Find Help Now. Focuses on mental health needs of children in Minnesota and strategies to access care. Transcript available below description.
Author(s): Marnie Werner
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Center for Rural Policy and Development
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