Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Policy
Investing in North Carolina's Caregiving Workforce: Recommendations to Strengthen North Carolina's Nursing, Direct Care, and Behavioral Health Workforce
Reports on North Carolina's caregiving workforce, with focus areas in nursing, behavioral health, and direct care. Provides context, describes existing solutions, and makes recommendations for addressing challenges and shortages in each focus area. Highlights state health investment, and lists current caregiving workforce initiatives. Mentions rural communities throughout.
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
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Reports on North Carolina's caregiving workforce, with focus areas in nursing, behavioral health, and direct care. Provides context, describes existing solutions, and makes recommendations for addressing challenges and shortages in each focus area. Highlights state health investment, and lists current caregiving workforce initiatives. Mentions rural communities throughout.
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
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Overdose Prevention Policy Considerations: A Policy Playbook for State and Territorial Health Officials and Agencies
Provides an overview of policy considerations related to overdose prevention, with a focus on health equity and stigma reduction, community distribution, drug checking equipment, syringe service programs, and substance use support peer programs. Includes case examples, strategies for overdose prevention interventions, and considerations for rural and frontier areas.
Author(s): Victoria Pless, Kaela Hurd, Kayley Humm, Arieana Love
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
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Provides an overview of policy considerations related to overdose prevention, with a focus on health equity and stigma reduction, community distribution, drug checking equipment, syringe service programs, and substance use support peer programs. Includes case examples, strategies for overdose prevention interventions, and considerations for rural and frontier areas.
Author(s): Victoria Pless, Kaela Hurd, Kayley Humm, Arieana Love
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
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Michigan's Roadmap to Rural Prosperity
Describes the characteristics, challenges, and significance of Michigan's rural communities, and identifies strategies for building rural prosperity. Presents data on rural and urban demographics and living conditions. Discusses rural health and well-being, workforce, service delivery, housing, infrastructure, economic development, and natural environment.
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Michigan Office of Rural Prosperity
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Describes the characteristics, challenges, and significance of Michigan's rural communities, and identifies strategies for building rural prosperity. Presents data on rural and urban demographics and living conditions. Discusses rural health and well-being, workforce, service delivery, housing, infrastructure, economic development, and natural environment.
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Michigan Office of Rural Prosperity
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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
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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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
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Child Support Engagement in Rural and Non-Rural Counties: More Engagement and Lower Amount Owed in Rural Areas
Explores differences in engagement in child support for custodial parents living in rural and nonrural areas. Compares the percentage of different types of child support agreements, expected child support payments, and actual child support payments received by custodial parents between 2010 and 2018. Identifies opportunities for federal, state, and tribal agencies to better serve custodial parents and their children through the Title IV-D program and other services.
Author(s): Maretta McDonald, Robin Ghertner
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
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Explores differences in engagement in child support for custodial parents living in rural and nonrural areas. Compares the percentage of different types of child support agreements, expected child support payments, and actual child support payments received by custodial parents between 2010 and 2018. Identifies opportunities for federal, state, and tribal agencies to better serve custodial parents and their children through the Title IV-D program and other services.
Author(s): Maretta McDonald, Robin Ghertner
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
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January 2024 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) January 2024 meeting. Covers payment adequacy and updates for physician and other health professional services, hospital inpatient and outpatient services, outpatient dialysis services, hospice services, skilled nursing facility services, home health agency services, and inpatient rehabilitation facility services. Discusses status reports on ambulatory surgical centers, Medicare Part D, and the Medicare Advantage program, as well as policy options for standardized benefits in Medicare Advantage plans. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Additional links: Assessing Payment Adequacy and Updating Payments: Hospital Inpatient and Outpatient Services
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) January 2024 meeting. Covers payment adequacy and updates for physician and other health professional services, hospital inpatient and outpatient services, outpatient dialysis services, hospice services, skilled nursing facility services, home health agency services, and inpatient rehabilitation facility services. Discusses status reports on ambulatory surgical centers, Medicare Part D, and the Medicare Advantage program, as well as policy options for standardized benefits in Medicare Advantage plans. Includes rural references and considerations throughout.
Additional links: Assessing Payment Adequacy and Updating Payments: Hospital Inpatient and Outpatient Services
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Legislative Action Bridging Public Health and Clinical Healthcare
Discusses legislation that relates to equitable access to healthcare, with a focus on telehealth, infrastructure, safety net services, management of healthcare costs, and the expansion of the healthcare workforce. Includes information on access to emergency departments in rural areas and the Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) designation.
Author(s): Ashley Cram, Brianna Gorman
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
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Discusses legislation that relates to equitable access to healthcare, with a focus on telehealth, infrastructure, safety net services, management of healthcare costs, and the expansion of the healthcare workforce. Includes information on access to emergency departments in rural areas and the Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) designation.
Author(s): Ashley Cram, Brianna Gorman
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
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The Future of Remote Patient Monitoring
Provides an overview of remote monitoring, including evidence-based use cases, coverage and utilization across payers, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation of remote monitoring devices, equity implications, and data security and privacy. Offers policy recommendations regarding ways to improve the use of remote monitoring services, ensure equitable access to these services across populations, and enhance data security and privacy standards. Includes rural references throughout.
Author(s): Julia Harris, Mikayla Curtis, Maya Sandalow, G. William Hoagland, Marilyn Werber Serafini
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Bipartisan Policy Center
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Provides an overview of remote monitoring, including evidence-based use cases, coverage and utilization across payers, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation of remote monitoring devices, equity implications, and data security and privacy. Offers policy recommendations regarding ways to improve the use of remote monitoring services, ensure equitable access to these services across populations, and enhance data security and privacy standards. Includes rural references throughout.
Author(s): Julia Harris, Mikayla Curtis, Maya Sandalow, G. William Hoagland, Marilyn Werber Serafini
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Bipartisan Policy Center
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Veterans Health: VA Should Improve Its Monitoring of Severe Maternal Complications and Mental Health Screenings
Examines Veterans Administration (VA) data on deaths and severe maternal morbidity among pregnant and postpartum veterans from fiscal year 2011 through 2020. Explores actions the VA has taken to monitor maternal health outcomes among pregnant and postpartum veterans and the extent to which the VA facilitates mental health screenings for these veterans. Offers recommendations to the VA regarding monitoring trends in severe maternal morbidity by veteran characteristics and maternity care coordinators' screening of veterans for mental health conditions. Includes rural references throughout.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Examines Veterans Administration (VA) data on deaths and severe maternal morbidity among pregnant and postpartum veterans from fiscal year 2011 through 2020. Explores actions the VA has taken to monitor maternal health outcomes among pregnant and postpartum veterans and the extent to which the VA facilitates mental health screenings for these veterans. Offers recommendations to the VA regarding monitoring trends in severe maternal morbidity by veteran characteristics and maternity care coordinators' screening of veterans for mental health conditions. Includes rural references throughout.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Evaluation of the Next Generation Accountable Care Organization (NGACO) Model: Final Report
Sixth and final evaluation report on the Next Generation Accountable Care Organization (NGACO) Model. Summarizes findings from across all six performance years (2016-2021) and explores how participating entities responded to the model and how they did or did not achieve model goals. Presents information on cumulative model-wide impacts on Medicare spending, utilization, and quality of care; variations in model outcomes by organization characteristics; spending patterns of beneficiaries served by NGACOs; population health strategies and pathways to reduced spending; lessons learned; and more. The appendices include data on community and beneficiary characteristics, including rurality.
Additional links: Findings at a Glance, Technical Appendices
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, NORC at the University of Chicago
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Sixth and final evaluation report on the Next Generation Accountable Care Organization (NGACO) Model. Summarizes findings from across all six performance years (2016-2021) and explores how participating entities responded to the model and how they did or did not achieve model goals. Presents information on cumulative model-wide impacts on Medicare spending, utilization, and quality of care; variations in model outcomes by organization characteristics; spending patterns of beneficiaries served by NGACOs; population health strategies and pathways to reduced spending; lessons learned; and more. The appendices include data on community and beneficiary characteristics, including rurality.
Additional links: Findings at a Glance, Technical Appendices
Date: 01/2024
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, NORC at the University of Chicago
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