Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare business and finance

MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the Physician Fee Schedule and Other Revisions to Part B for CY 2019
Comment on a July 2018 Federal Register proposed rule revising the physician fee schedule to improve payment systems for physicians and other Medicare Part B revisions.
Author(s): Francis J. Crosson
Date: 09/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Changes in Insurance Coverage and Source of Health Care among High-risk Rural Female Offenders Following the Affordable Care Act
Highlights a study on healthcare coverage for formerly incarcerated rural women who use drugs. Compares pre- and post-Affordable Care Act (ACA) rates and considers the role of insurance coverage in healthcare utilization.
Author(s): Megan F. Dickson, Michele Staton, Martha Tillson, et al.
Citation: Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 29(3), 843-863
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
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Grantee Sourcebook: Rural Health Network Development Grant Program, 2014-2017
Detailed descriptions of 54 Rural Health Network Development grant projects funded during the 2014-2017 period. Includes an overview of the networks and their impact, a list of grantees by state and focus area, and grantee profiles providing contact information and in-depth project descriptions.
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy, National Rural Health Resource Center
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Innovation Center State-Based Initiatives: A Systematic Review of Lessons Learned
A synthesis of findings from 47 evaluation reports covering 12 Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation models with a state component. Includes information on the impact of models for rural areas and identifies barriers and challenges faced in rural areas.
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, L&M Policy Research
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2018 Update on Priority Strategies: North Carolina Rural Health Action Plan
Details the progress North Carolina has made in 6 priority areas outlined in the 2014 Rural Health Action Plan. These include investment in local industries, ensuring that childhood settings promote educational success, encouraging healthy eating and active living, screening for and treating substance abuse and mental health issues, educating people about insurance and safety net options, and creating incentives to support recruitment and retention of providers to underserved areas.
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Institute of Medicine
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Advanced Primary Care: A Key Contributor to Successful ACOs
Reviews the literature on accountable care organizations (ACOs) regarding characteristics of successful ACOs and outcomes for cost, quality, and utilization, including literature on rural ACOs. Analyzes Medicare and National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) data on ACO cost and quality outcomes to assess the role of advanced primary care models such as patient-centered medical homes on ACO success.
Additional links: Executive Summary, White Paper
Author(s): Yalda Jabbarpour, Megan Coffman, Andy Habib, et al.
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Primary Care Collaborative, Robert Graham Center
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Rural Health Insurance Market Challenges
Policy brief examining challenges affecting rural health insurance markets with a focus on Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, Medicaid Managed Care, and the Health Insurance Marketplace. Provides recommendations related to health insurance availability, network development and adequacy, and consumer and provider engagement.
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Closing the Gap on Dental HPSAs: Louisiana Oral Health Workforce Assessment
Discusses findings and offers recommendations from an oral health workforce needs assessment in Louisiana. Highlights the state's oral health status of children and adults, access to care, and fluoridation. Reports on surveys and interviews addressing workforce demographics, practice information, perception of oral health access, and Medicaid policies. Appendices include additional data on state Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs).
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Louisiana Department of Health
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Spread of Medicare Accountable Care Organizations in Rural America
Analyzes data describing Medicare Accountable Care Organization (ACO) growth in non-metro U.S. counties from 2016 to 2017. Includes data on Medicare ACOs by metro and non-metro status and data on those Medicare ACOs participating in the ACO Investment Model (AIM) initiative by metro and non-metro status.
Author(s): Nora Kopping, Fred Ullrich, Keith Mueller
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Evaluation of the Accountable Care Organization Investment Model: AIM Impacts in the First Performance Year
Evaluation examining the first year performance of the 47 Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) participating in the ACO Investment Model (AIM), which tests the use of prepaid shared savings to encourage new ACOs to form in rural and underserved areas (Test 1) and to encourage current Medicare Shared Savings Program ACOs to transition to arrangements with greater financial risk (Test 2). Describes provider characteristics, beneficiary characteristics, and impacts of the 41 Test 1 AIM ACOs. Includes data on rurality for both Test 1 and Test 2 AIM ACOs.
Additional links: Appendices, Findings At-A-Glance
Date: 08/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Abt Associates, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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