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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Poverty

Children in Rural Areas and Their Family Characteristics
Provides 2019 data on the percentages of children aged 5 to 17 enrolled in school, the highest education level of their parents, and their family structure by locale, with breakdowns by city, suburban, town, and rural. Includes poverty levels of children by state.
Date: 08/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Education Statistics
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Ensuring Age-Friendly Public Health in Rural Communities: Challenges, Opportunities, and Model Programs
Discusses the components of age-friendly environments and how to support public health efforts that improve the lives of aging residents in rural areas. Provides data related to rural technology access, rural versus urban poverty rates and healthcare provider workforce, and county-level U.S. maps of percentage of population aged 65 or older and rural versus urban majority communities. Includes innovations and recommendations for age-friendly public health systems.
Author(s): M. Aaron Guest, Megan Wolfe, Karon Phillips, Jane Hook
Date: 08/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Trust for America's Health
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Characterizing Rugged Terrain in the United States
Analyzes the impact of rugged terrain on travel barriers and community development in U.S. Census tracts, with a focus on the relationship between terrain, rurality, and low-income areas. Presents two representations of topographic variability: the Area Ruggedness Scale and the Road Ruggedness Scale. Includes related maps and data applying the scales to regions, states, and rural and urban areas of the U.S.
Author(s): Elizabeth A. Dobis, John Cromartie, Ryan Williams, Kyle Reed
Date: 08/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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The Burden of Cancer in Persistent Poverty Areas of California
Compares cancer incidence between areas of persistent and non-persistent poverty in California between 2006 and 2020. Discusses the role of rurality in persistent poverty as well as county-level data. Includes breakdown by race and ethnicity and types of cancer.
Author(s): Ani S. Movsisyan, Frances B. Maguire, Ayman T. Ullah, et al.
Date: 07/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: California Cancer Reporting and Epidemiologic Surveillance (CalCARES) Program
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The State of Poverty in Ohio: Vulnerable to Disruption 2023 Report
Describes poverty in Ohio with sections on COVID-19 pandemic learning losses, mental health, and transportation. Features statistics showing variation between counties.
Date: 07/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Ohio Association of Community Action Agencies
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Economic Pressure and Parent Acculturative Stress: Effects on Rural Midwestern Low-Income Latinx Child Behaviors
Examines economic and acculturative stress on rural Latinx immigrant families in the Midwest. Analyzes interview data from 148 rural low-income Latinx immigrant mothers for themes such as economic pressures, parent acculturative stress, maternal depressive symptoms, parenting competence, child internalizing and externalizing behaviors, and more.
Author(s): Juan Bao, Kimberly Greder
Citation: Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 44, 490-501
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
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Using Coaching to Address Economic Stability for People with Low Incomes: The Design and Implementation of Four Employment Coaching Programs
Examines the use of employment coaching for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients. Utilizes 2018 and 2019 data to analyze 4 programs and their context, design, and implementation. Includes discussion of a coaching program that takes place in rural Iowa.
Author(s): Karen Gardiner, Sheena McConnell
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Administration for Children and Families
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Advancing Economic Development in Persistent-Poverty Communities
Examines census tracts to identify areas of "persistent poverty," defined as an area with at least a 20% poverty rate for at least 30 years. Discusses the distribution of the persistently poor population between rural and urban areas and highlights specific regions such as the Southeast, Tribal areas, and Appalachia. Outlines contributors to persistent poverty including workforce development, lack of infrastructure, race and ethnicity, economic conditions, and more. Presents 4 case studies, including 2 rural studies, to highlight overall themes and make recommendations for improving conditions in persistently poor locations. Interactive map provides information and data on persistent poverty counties.
Additional links: Executive Summary, Interactive Map
Author(s): August Benzow, Kenan Fikri, Joanne Kim, Daniel Newman
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Economic Innovation Group
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Access to Care among Medicare Beneficiaries Aged 65 and Over Living with High-Impact Chronic Pain
Examines access to care and its association with high-impact chronic pain among Medicare recipients over 65 and not living in a long-term care facility between 2018 and 2020. Includes data breakdown between metro area and non-metro area residents. Discusses delay in seeking medical care due to cost and general access to care.
Author(s): Jared Sawyer, Laura Stoff, Carrie Goetsch, et al.
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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The Impacts of Opioid Addiction on the Rural Workforce
A recorded webinar that examines how the rural workforce has been impacted by opioid addiction. Discusses issues of healthcare access, poverty, mental health, and farmworker health, along with data on workforce impacts. Includes resources to support opioid recovery and examples of recovery efforts in specific regions, such as Appalachia.
Additional links: Executive Summary, Presentation, Transcript
Author(s): Kellie Kubena, Carol Wetuski, Lauren Wood, et al.
Date: 06/2023
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organizations: Appalachian Regional Commission, First Tennessee Development District, Office of Workforce Investment (OWI), U.S. Department of Agriculture
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