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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Rural-urban differences

Access to Maternity Care in Pennsylvania: Labor and Delivery Services
Fact sheet providing an overview of access to maternity care in rural Pennsylvania. Features county-level maps showing locations of hospitals with a labor and delivery unit as of 2025, and locations of general acute care hospitals, with shadings showing counties with no labor and delivery unit and those with at least one unit. Includes statistics on numbers of OB/GYNs and certified nurse midwives per 10,000 females of childbearing age, with breakdowns by urban and rural areas.
Date: 05/2025
Sponsoring organization: Center for Rural Pennsylvania
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Midwest Urban-Rural Differences in Cancer Prevalence
Analyzes cancer prevalence by level of rurality in a midwestern region, utilizing Rochester Epidemiology Project (REP) data of 647,909 people who lived in a 27-county region of Minnesota and Wisconsin as of January 2020. Includes data breakdowns by level of rurality and place of cancer, smoking status, sex, age, and other demographic factors.
Author(s): Christine M. Prissel, Brandon R. Grossardt, Lila J. Finney Rutten, et al.
Citation: Mayo Clinic Proceedings
Date: 05/2025
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Access to CCTA at Safety-Net Hospitals Across the United States
Examines the availability of coronary CT angiography (CCTA) at safety-net hospitals to evaluate patients with chest pain. Analyzes 391 safety-net hospitals according to bed size, state, academic status, and rural versus urban location.
Author(s): Jonah Delshad, Trevor Weis, Caleb Bayona, et al.
Citation: Journal of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography, 19(3), 340-343
Date: 05/2025
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Impact of Telemental Health on Suicide Prevention Care in U.S. Emergency Departments
Describes results of a survey of 977 hospital emergency departments regarding the use of telemental healthcare, and presents data by hospital characteristics, including rural location and Critical Access Hospital (CAH) status. Explores whether access to telemental healthcare affects use of six recommended suicide prevention practices. Compares the use of suicide prevention practices among patients with identified suicide risk by telemental healthcare status and CAH designation.
Author(s): Stephanie K. Doupnik, Cadence F. Bowden, Diana Worsley, et al.
Citation: Academic Emergency Medicine, 32(9), 956-965
Date: 05/2025
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Inpatient Care Experiences Are Better in Critical Access Hospitals than in Other Hospitals
Examines the inpatient care experiences of patients in Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) and inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) hospitals. Utilizes Hospital Consumer Assessment of Hospitals, Providers, and Systems (HCAHPS) survey scores of CAHs and IPPs to evaluate patient experience according to hospital characteristics, patient characteristics, and rural versus urban location. Discusses the importance of CAHs to rural community healthcare access.
Author(s): Megan K. Beckett, Christopher W. Cohea, Paul D. Cleary, Laura A. Giordano, Marc N. Elliott
Citation: Health Affairs Scholar, 3(5)
Date: 05/2025
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Traffic Safety Facts, 2023 Data: Alcohol-Impaired Driving
National data on traffic crashes involving alcohol-impaired drivers. Features statistics with breakdowns including road conditions, month, time of day, state, and rural or urban location.
Date: 05/2025
Sponsoring organization: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
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Traffic Safety Facts, 2023 Data: Passenger Vehicles
National data on traffic crashes involving passenger vehicles. Features statistics from 2020-2023 with breakdowns by vehicle type, time of day, fatalities, state, and rural or urban locations.
Date: 05/2025
Sponsoring organization: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
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Traffic Safety Facts, 2023 Data: Older Population
National data on traffic crashes involving drivers age 65 and older. Features statistics from 2014-2023 with breakdowns by sex, age group, blood alcohol concentrations, state, and rural or urban location.
Date: 05/2025
Sponsoring organization: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
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National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Quick Facts 2023
Provides statistics on motor vehicle crashes in 2021-2023, with breakdowns including fatalities, injuries, vehicle type, alcohol-impaired-driving, seat belt use, children, older population, and rural or urban location.
Date: 05/2025
Sponsoring organization: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
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Compared With Urban Counties, Rural Counties Had a Lower Share of Working-Age Populations and a Higher Share of Residents Older Than 60 in 2023
Chart showing percentages of working-age populations and share of residents older than 60 in 2023, with breakdowns by urban and rural areas.
Author(s): Richelle L. Winkler
Date: 05/2025
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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