Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Policy

Telemedicine Reimbursement
Policy position brief showing how telemedicine can help safety net providers care for people who live and work in rural and underserved areas. Lists types of programs, explores reimbursement issues, gives examples of innovative programs with telemedicine components, and offers recommendations for increasing access and improving outcomes.
Author(s): Becky Sanders, Zach Allen, Greg Maurer
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Improving Rural Oral Healthcare Access
Policy position brief discussing the oral and systemic health connection and the dental workforce shortage. Highlights the need for interprofessional education and offers recommendations for improving access to rural oral healthcare.
Author(s): Joni Nelson, Jacob Thatcher, Joy Williams
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Demonstrations and Pilots: Rural Centric Transformation
Policy brief describing the need for an intentional increase in funding for rural centric innovation for demonstration projects and pilot programs. Analyzes current national policies and National Rural Health Association (NRHA) policy positions, and covers the need for rural specific demonstration project data. Includes policy recommendations.
Author(s): Kathy Whitmire, Sue Grafstrom, Erin Tanenbaum
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Addressing Health and Health Care Needs in the United States-Mexico Border Region
Policy position brief describing geography and demographics of the border region, population health and healthcare issues, factors contributing to the health crisis, public policy implications, and suggestions for addressing needs. Comprises Executive Summary and Full Report.
Author(s): Brian Lady, Carrie Henning-Smith, Susan Kunz
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services: Medicare Program; Durable Medical Equipment Fee Schedule Adjustments to Resume the Transitional 50/50 Blended Rates to Provide Relief in Rural Areas and Non-Contiguous Areas
Summarizes the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) review of the Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) rule on the Medicare Program durable medical equipment (DME) fee schedule adjustments to resume the transitional 50/50 blended rates providing relief in rural areas and non-contiguous areas.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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MAP 2018: Recommendations for a Core Set of Rural-Relevant Measures for Hospitals and Selected Ambulatory Care Settings and Measuring and Improving Access to Care
Describes selection criteria and processes used to create a draft core set of measures, lists the measures, and describes measurement gap areas identified by the Measures Applications Partnership (MAP) Rural Health Workgroup, a public-private partnership of healthcare stakeholders. Second in a series of 3 reports documenting the Workgroup's continuing efforts.
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Quality Forum MAP Rural Health Advisory Workgroup
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Toward Hospital Global Budgeting: State Considerations
Overview of hospital global budgeting, using case studies from Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Vermont. Explores ways in which global budgets can offer some financial stability for rural hospitals.
Author(s): Robert Murray
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: State Health & Value Strategies
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Toolkit: State Strategies to Develop Value-Based Payment Methodologies for Federally Qualified Health Centers
Designed to help policymakers implement Medicaid value-based payment (VBP) methodologies by providing background information, key considerations, and state strategies. Table 1 in the Payment Methodologies section gives an overview of select state VBP methodologies for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs). Addresses challenges for small and rural FQHCs.
Author(s): Rachel Donlon, Hannah Dorr, Kitty Purington
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Academy for State Health Policy
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Establishing Effective Patient Navigation Programs in Oncology: Proceedings of a Workshop
Summarizes workshop proceedings and discussion to examine how to improve cancer patients' healthcare services navigation. Discusses current models of patient navigation programs, including programs in rural areas. Covers lessons learned, policy changes, and opportunities to improve cancer patient healthcare services navigation. Document is free to download after providing an email address.
Additional links: Read Online, Videos
Author(s): Board on Health Care Services
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Evaluation of the Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative: Fourth Annual Report
Final report evaluating the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services four-year Comprehensive Primary Care (CPC) initiative. Examines CPC participants, program implementation, and impact of CPC on clinicians and staff, patient experience, cost, service use, and quality of care. Includes information on rural practices participating in the CPC.
Author(s): Deborah Peikes, Grace Anglin, Stacy Dale, et al.
Date: 05/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Mathematica Policy Research
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