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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Type: Document

Online Pilot Grocery Intervention Among Rural and Urban Residents Aimed to Improve Purchasing Habits
Results of a study comparing food purchase choices of 129 rural and urban adults in 7 counties in Kentucky, Maryland, and North Carolina who shopped at online or brick-and-mortar stores during an 8-week-long intervention in the fall of 2021. Features statistics including intervention effect of fruit and vegetable purchases during the study as well as demographics with breakdowns by urban or rural location.
Author(s): Alison Gustafson, Rachel Gillespie, Emily DeWitt, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(2), 871
Date: 01/2022
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Changes in Access to Medication Treatment during COVID-19 Telehealth Expansion and Disparities in Telehealth Use for Medicare Beneficiaries with Opioid Use Disorder
Discusses policies that allow access to medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) via telehealth before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Examines outpatient telehealth use and MOUD treatment among Medicare beneficiaries by dual eligibility status, rurality, and presence of comorbid health conditions between April-December 2020.
Date: 01/2022
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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COVID-19 Vaccinations in Rural America
Provides an overview of trends in COVID-19 vaccination in rural areas through January 2022. Includes charts and maps comparing vaccination rates in metropolitan and nonmetro areas, as well as COVID-19 mortality. Discusses nonmetro vaccination rates among different demographic groups.
Date: 01/2022
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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CARES Act Telehealth Expansion: Trends in Post-Discharge Follow-Up and Association with 30-Day Readmissions for Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program Health Conditions
Provides an overview of the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program (HRRP) and examines the impact of expanded Medicare payment for telehealth services on post-discharge follow-up and hospital readmissions for HRRP conditions. Describes trends in post-discharge follow-up before and after the telehealth expansion and compares trends by health condition, sociodemographic characteristics, rurality, and follow-up method.
Date: 01/2022
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Rural Community Health Initiative: Compendium of Best Practices
Presents a collection of community-based health initiatives, including a school health initiative, a COVID-19 vaccine outreach and education program, and telehealth consortia, among others. Describes successful outcomes and sources of funding for each program.
Date: 01/2022
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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"It's the Relationships": Q&A with Peggy Broussard Wheeler
An interview with Peggy Broussard Wheeler, Vice President of Policy at the California Hospital Association. Covers the challenges rural hospitals face during the pandemic, health equity efforts, workforce issues, and more. Discusses how rural hospitals work together to address concerns.
Author(s): Allee Mead
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 01/2022
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Distressed Minnesota Community Hospitals, 2019
Explores the characteristics of financially distressed hospitals in Minnesota. Presents data by hospital type, including Critical Access Hospital (CAH) designation and rural status.
Date: 01/2022
Sponsoring organization: Minnesota Department of Health
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Integrating Serious Illness Care into Primary Care Delivery: Proceedings of a Workshop
Summarizes presentations and discussions from a June 2021 workshop on challenges and opportunities to integrate serious illness care into primary care settings. Covers the shared principles of primary and serious illness care, the interdisciplinary teams in each discipline, policy issues that serve as barriers or incentives, and best practices. Includes examples of integrating serious illness care into primary care settings in rural areas.
Additional links: Read Online
Date: 01/2022
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Disaster Recovery: School Districts in Socially Vulnerable Communities Faced Heightened Challenges after Recent Natural Disasters
Examines 5 school districts in socially vulnerable communities and describes problems faced by students after disasters, including housing instability, food insecurity, and lack of access to mental health services, especially in rural communities. Includes a state- and territory-level map showing school districts that received federal recovery grants for 2017-2019 presidentially-declared disasters.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 01/2022
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Prescription Drug Affordability among Medicare Beneficiaries
Examines the affordability of prescription drugs among Medicare beneficiaries. Explores whether Medicare beneficiaries skipped doses, took less medication, delayed filling a prescription, or did not fill needed prescriptions due to cost concerns. Explores affordability concerns by race and ethnicity, sex, family income, urban versus rural counties, and presence of select chronic conditions.
Author(s): Wafa Tarazi, Kenneth Finegold, Steven Sheingold, Nancy De Lew, Benjamin D. Sommers
Date: 01/2022
Sponsoring organization: HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
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