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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Policy

Public Law 105-33: Balanced Budget Act of 1997
Includes the entire text of Public Law 105-33, commonly known as the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. The legislation created the Critical Access Hospital designation and outlines details of the program, including eligibility and operational regulations.
Date: 08/1997
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Congress
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Rural Health Clinics: Rising Program Expenditures Not Focused on Improving Care in Isolated Areas
A review of the Rural Health Clinic (RHC) program. Examined whether the RHC program provides primary care access to Medicare and Medicaid recipients who otherwise would not have it. Also looked at controls in place for payments to RHCs from Medicare and Medicaid.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 02/1997
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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National Rural Health Policy: Recommendations from the First Eight Years of the National Advisory Committee on Rural Health
Summarizes activities and accomplishments of the National Advisory Committee on Rural Health from 1988-1996. Includes chapters on health workforce, Medicare payment policy, special needs of rural populations, and issues impacting rural health which the committee may address in the future.
Date: 01/1997
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Health Care Shortage Areas: Designations Not a Useful Tool for Directing Resources to the Underserved
Discusses the Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) and Medically Underserved Area (MUA) designations and how well these designations help target federal resources to benefit those who are underserved.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 09/1995
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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American Indian and Alaska Native Areas
Chapter 5 of the U.S. Census Bureau's Geographic Areas Reference Manual details the classifications used for defining American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Breaks down the definitions of American Indian Reservations, Trust Lands, and Alaska Native Regional Corporations, among others. Highlights a state-level breakdown of type and number of AI/AN communities.
Date: 11/1994
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Census Bureau
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If You Knew the Conditions: Health Care to Native Americans
Summarizes the history of administration of healthcare to Native American recipients by the United States government. Includes biographies of famous Native American physicians. Online version of a 1994 exhibit on Native American Health.
Date: 1994
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. National Library of Medicine
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Developing Rural Health Networks Under the EACH/RPCH Program: Interim Report of the Evaluation of the Essential Access Community Hospital/Rural Primary Care Hospital Program
Describes the initial development of the Essential Access Community Hospital (EACH) program from October 1991 through December 1992. The program recognized a limited-service facility, the Rural Primary Care Hospital, and linked each RPCH into a network tied to a larger supporting Essential Access Community Hospital.
Author(s): Suzanne Felt, George Wright
Date: 09/1993
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Mathematica Policy Research
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Medical Assistance Facilities: A Demonstration Program to Provide Access to Health Care in Frontier Communities
Describes the Health Care Financing Administration's Medical Assistance Facility (MAF) demonstration program, which aimed to preserve healthcare access in frontier areas of Montana by converting full-service hospitals into low-intensity, short-stay healthcare service centers. Examines the impact of the program on access to inpatient care.
Date: 07/1993
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Office of Inspector General (HHS)
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Improving the Operational Definition of "Rural Areas" For Federal Programs
Describes the methodology of the Goldsmith rural modification for metropolitan counties designated by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
Author(s): Harold F. Goldsmith, Dena S. Puskin, Dianne J. Stiles
Date: 1993
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Federal Office of Rural Health Policy
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Health Care in Rural America
Report focuses on access of people in rural America to basic healthcare services. An important source of rural health information that continues to be of historical value. Covers rural populations and health programs, rural health services, and workforce. Detailed information on maternal and infant health services and rural mental health services.
Date: 09/1990
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Congress Office of Technology Assessment
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