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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Infectious diseases

MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2021
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Includes discussion on Medicare payment policies directly affecting rural providers and beneficiaries. Addresses payment adequacy for healthcare facilities and services, improving Medicare payment for post-acute care, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, and the impact of healthcare provider consolidation. Contains information on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Medicare beneficiary healthcare access, mortality, and service use. Presents an option for Medicare's coverage of telehealth beyond the public health emergency.
Date: 03/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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COVID-19 and Rural Communities: Protecting Rural Lives and Health
Report examining the impact of COVID-19 in rural America, presenting data on case rates and mortality, prevalence in diverse rural communities, and health conditions contributing to severe cases of COVID-19. Discusses issues of socioeconomic vulnerability, healthcare access, and public health compliance. Offers actions to address disparities, including increasing access, supporting livelihoods, and considering social determinants of health in healthcare planning.
Author(s): Jesse Bradford, Erica Coe, Kana Enomoto, Matt White
Date: 03/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: McKinsey & Company
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"All Hands On Deck": The COVID-19 Pandemic Through Nurses' Eyes
Podcast recording featuring Mary Wakefield describes the role of nurses and the challenges they have faced throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Discusses shortages of personal protective equipment, workforce challenges, vaccine administration, and solutions to support nurses in the future. Highlights the experiences of nurses at rural hospitals and clinics.
Date: 03/2021
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Innovations and Workforce Challenges for CAHs during COVID-19
Presents results from a survey of Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) on hospital operation and workforce adaptations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Discusses innovative practices adopted by CAHs related to hospital processes and clinical care. Describes how CAHs overcame workforce challenges during COVID-19.
Author(s): Madeleine Pick, Megan Lahr, Keelia Silvis, Ira Moscovice
Date: 03/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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2021 RHC Billing and Coding Update
Recording of a March 9, 2021, webinar providing an overview of coding and billing changes relevant to Rural Health Clinics (RHCs). Discusses guidelines for reporting COVID-19 immunizations and monoclonal antibody infusions, telehealth coding and billing during the COVID-19 public health emergency, ICD-10-CM diagnosis coding for COVID-19, and RHC lab billing and COVID test reporting. Part of the Rural Health Clinic Technical Assistance Series.
Additional links: AMA Code & Guideline Changes, COVID Vaccine Log, Presentation Slides, Transcript
Date: 03/2021
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: National Association of Rural Health Clinics
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CAH Partnerships During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Presents findings from a survey of Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) in eight states on how they partnered with communities and public health agencies in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Discusses the type of support CAHs received from their State Flex Program (SFP).
Author(s): Madeleine Pick, Megan Lahr, Keelia Silvis, Ira Moscovice
Date: 03/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Rural and Urban Differences in COVID-19 Prevention Behaviors
Examines the influence of political ideology, demographic factors, and COVID-19 experiences on COVID-19-related preventive health behaviors in rural and urban communities, based on a survey of 5,009 adults. Features demographics and statistics on various behaviors and attitudes, with breakdowns by urban and rural location.
Author(s): Timothy Callaghan, Jennifer A. Lueck, Kristen Lunz Trujillo, Alva O. Ferdinand
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 37(2), 287-295
Date: 03/2021
Type: Document
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Nonmetropolitan COVID-19 Incidence and Mortality Rates Surpassed Metropolitan Rates Within the First 24 Weeks of the Pandemic Declaration: United States, March 1 – October 18, 2020
Compares COVID-19 cases and death rates in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas across three 11-week periods in 2020. Features state-level maps providing a visual assessment of the changing impact that COVID-19 had on nonmetropolitan populations.
Author(s): Kevin A Matthews, Fred Ullrich, Anne H. Gaglioti, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 37(2), 272-277
Date: 03/2021
Type: Document
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Urban-Rural Differences in COVID-19 Exposures and Outcomes in the South: A Preliminary Analysis of South Carolina
Examines confirmed cases of COVID-19 in South Carolina from March 1 - September 5, 2020. Compares data between urban and rural counties and their relationship to mitigation strategies and social vulnerability. Includes figures that show space-time analysis of COVID-19 impacts.
Author(s): Qian Huang, Sarah Jackson, Sahar Derakhshan, et al.
Citation: PLoS One, 16(2)
Date: 02/2021
Type: Document
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Racial/Ethnic Heterogeneity and Rural-Urban Disparity of COVID-19 Case Fatality Ratio in the USA: a Negative Binomial and GIS-Based Analysis
Examines racial heterogeneity in COVID-19 case fatality ratio, using data from January-December 2020. Features statistics with breakdowns by urban, completely rural, and mostly rural locations.
Author(s): Ayodeji E. Iyanda, Kwadwo A. Boakye, Yongmei Lu, Joseph R. Oppong
Citation: Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, 9(2), 708-721
Date: 02/2021
Type: Document
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