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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare business and finance

Hospital Financing: Volume Limits and Reporting Could Help Manage Risks of Expanding FHA's Mortgage Insurance Program
Describes the Federal Housing Administration's (FHA) Hospital Mortgage Insurance Program, which insures loans for capital improvements at hospitals; loans insured through the program between 2000 and 2022. Explores characteristics of hospitals ineligible for the program that may impact their financing options. Examines the potential effects and risks of extending Hospital Mortgage Insurance Program eligibility to currently ineligible hospital types on program participation risks. Offers recommendations to Congress if it decides to expand program eligibility to hospitals that primarily provide non-acute care services.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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How Does Cost Affect Access to Healthcare?
Explores trends in how costs affect access to healthcare using data from the 2022 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Covers the percentage of adults who delayed or went without care due to cost. Presents data by income level, health status, race and ethnicity, insurance status, and urban/rural residence. Also discusses insulin users who rationed insulin due to costs and the impact of medical debt on accessing care.
Author(s): Shameek Rakshit, Krutika Amin, Cynthia Cox
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: KFF, Peterson Center on Healthcare
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Billing Requirements for Intensive Outpatient Program Services for Federally Qualified Health Centers & Rural Health Clinics
Provides an overview of Medicare coverage for intensive outpatient program (IOP) services and billing requirements for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Rural Health Clinics (RHCs).
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Expanding the Care Team: Leveraging a Broad Workforce to Improve Health Care in Kansas
Discusses challenges facing the healthcare landscape in Kansas, such as hospital closures and healthcare workforce shortages, and how expanding healthcare teams to include professions like community paramedics and community health workers can help alleviate these challenges. Includes data on demographics of the Kansas population and related hospital closures that impact rural areas in particular.
Author(s): Valentina Blanchard, Wyatt J. Beckman, Linda J. Sheppard
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Kansas Health Institute
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Produce Prescription Programs Offer 'A Holistic Approach' to Addressing Rural Food Insecurity and Diet-Related Disease
Features produce prescription programs serving rural Mississippi, New Mexico, and Vermont that are helping improve access to healthy foods for those with diet-related chronic conditions. Describes how produce Rx programs can support local food systems and discusses funding and sustainability considerations.
Author(s): Brendan Stermer
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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CAH Staff Perspectives on use of EHRs for Quality Measure Activities
Summarizes interviews with eight Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) regarding electronic health record (EHR) use for quality measurement and improvement activities. Describes strengths and challenges for CAHs using EHRs for quality-related activities. Discusses the CAHs' readiness for, and concerns about, new health equity and social drivers of health quality measures.
Author(s): Madeleine Pick, Megan Lahr, Abigail Wenninger, Dori Cross, Ben C.D. Weideman
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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EHR Capabilities and Interoperability in Critical Access Hospitals
Explores the electronic health record (EHR) and interoperable health information exchange capabilities among Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) in 2019. Analyzes 2019 American Hospital Association Information Technology Supplement (AHAIT) survey data, which includes data from nearly 700 CAHs. Compares EHR capabilities and the use of electronic methods for four interoperability domains by CAH status and system affiliation. Discusses how to support CAHs in advancing information sharing and using comprehensive EHRs.
Author(s): Madeleine Pick, Alyssa Furukawa, Megan Lahr, Dori Cross
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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A Comparison of 2017-19 Uncompensated Care of Rural and Urban Hospitals by Net Patient Revenue, System Affiliation, and Ownership
Examines the association between uncompensated care and three factors - net patient revenue, system affiliation, and ownership - using Medicare Cost Report data from 2017-2019. Compares rates of uncompensated care as a percentage of operating expenses across Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), rural prospective payment system (PPS) hospitals, and urban PPS hospitals.
Author(s): Emmaline Keesee, Susie Gurzenda, Kristie Thompson, George Pink
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Data Book: Beneficiaries Dually Eligible for Medicare and Medicaid
Provides an overview of dual-eligible beneficiaries who receive benefits from both Medicare and Medicaid. Analyzes data from calendar year 2021 to examine beneficiary demographics, eligibility pathways, utilization and spending patterns, and more. Exhibit 6 on page 35 includes a breakdown of beneficiaries based on urban or rural residence.
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Trends in Emergency Department Visits Among People Younger Than Age 65 by Insurance Status: United States, 2010–2021
Provides data on people younger than 65 who visited emergency rooms from 2010-2021 by insurance status, with further data breakdowns by age, sex, and metro versus nonmetro statistical area.
Author(s): Loredana Santo, Susan M. Schappert, Jill J. Ashman
Date: 01/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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