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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health conditions

Details on HHS' Distribution of Emergency Funds to Hospitals with High COVID-19 Admissions and Rural Providers
An overview of the methodologies the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services used to distribute COVID-19-related funding to hospitals with high numbers of COVID-19 admissions, rural hospitals, Critical Access Hospitals, Rural Health Clinics, and health centers. Includes a comparison of the terms and conditions of the different CARES Act funding programs.
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Prevalence of Self-Reported Hypertension and Antihypertensive Medication Use by County and Rural-Urban Classification — United States, 2017
Examines self-reported prevalence of diagnosed hypertension and antihypertensive medication use. Includes data for metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore (rural) areas. Also discusses geographic trends at the county level, with maps showing county-level hypertension prevalence and medication use. Highlights higher prevalence of hypertension in the Southeast, Appalachia, and the Great Plains.
Author(s): Claudine M. Samanic, Kamil E. Barbour, Yong Liu, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 69(18), 533-539
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Mental Health in a Pandemic: Q&A with Thomasine Heitkamp and Dennis Mohatt
An interview with Mountain Plains Mental Health Technology Transfer Center co-directors Thomasine Heitkamp and Dennis Mohatt on the mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Discusses telehealth, economic insecurity, broadband, and mental health under COVID-19 and self-isolation.
Author(s): Allee Mead
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Metropolitan/Nonmetropolitan COVID-19 Confirmed Cases and General and ICU Beds
Policy brief analyzing the number of hospital beds and cases of COVID-19 during the period from April 13, 2020, to April 19, 2020, to assess what impact the disease might have on rural facilities. Features statistics for counties with and without general and intensive care unit (ICU) beds, with breakdowns by metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas.
Author(s): Fred Ullrich, Keith Mueller
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Public Health Response to the Initiation and Spread of Pandemic COVID-19 in the United States, February 24–April 21, 2020
Identifies factors that contributed to the spread of COVID-19 in early 2020. Discusses transmission due to travel, large gatherings (including a funeral in rural Georgia), high-risk workplaces such as rural meatpacking facilities, densely populated areas, and unrecognized transmission related to limited testing and asymptomatic and presymptomatic spread.
Author(s): Anne Schuchat
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 69(18), 551-556
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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COVID-19 Among Workers in Meat and Poultry Processing Facilities ― 19 States, April 2020
Examines COVID-19 cases among workers in 115 meat and poultry processing facilities reported by 19 states. Discusses factors potentially affecting risk for infection, including difficulties with workplace physical distancing and hygiene and crowded living and transportation conditions. Includes recommended changes to address these issues.
Author(s): Jonathan W. Dyal, Michael P. Grant, Kendra Broadwater, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 69(18), 557-561
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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COVID-19 and the Indian Health Service
Discusses how the Indian Health Service (IHS) has been impacted by COVID-19. Describes concerns some tribes have, including the IHS testing capacity for COVID-19, workforce shortages, and lost revenue at IHS facilities. Outlines federal funding efforts to enhance the IHS COVID-19 response.
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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An Older Population Increases Estimated COVID-19 Death Rates in Rural America
Examines the influence of age structure and other factors on the spread of coronavirus in rural areas of the U.S. Compares the incidence of the virus and the estimated mortality rates due to the virus in rural and urban areas.
Author(s): Kenneth M. Johnson
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Carsey School of Public Policy
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Encouraging Tribal Community Crash Reporting
Provides information on the process of working with 4 Native American tribes in North Dakota to establish a crash reporting system that generates more reliable information about motor vehicle injuries for Indian Nations. Evaluates current crash data and collection processes with goals toward reducing fatalities, promoting safety, and recognizing tribal sovereignty when collecting data.
Additional links: Research Brief
Author(s): Kimberly Vachal
Date: 04/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute
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Urban and Rural Differences in Coronavirus Pandemic Preparedness
Examines the variation in hospital bed capacity by region in the U.S. and by metro and non-metro status. Discusses urban and rural differences in hospital resources, including hospital and ICU beds per capita. Provides an interactive map displaying hospital beds per capita and select demographic characteristics of metro and non-metro areas of each state and by hospital referral region.
Author(s): Kendal Orgera, Daniel McDermott, Matthew Rae, et al.
Date: 04/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: KFF, Peterson Center on Healthcare
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