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Rural Health
Resources by Type: Document

Kentucky Community Fights Back against Cardiovascular Disease
Results of a study conducted in Appalachian Kentucky, exploring a program in which community health workers helped promote healthy eating, physical activity, stress reduction, and other activities to manage risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute
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Promising Practice: Iowa Project Promotes Healthcare Careers Early
Highlights a promising practice led by the Iowa State Office of Rural Health. Discusses the Opportunities in Health Sciences: Iowa Career Pathways program, which provides resources to support high school students and adults looking for a career change to enter the healthcare workforce in the state.
Author(s): Ashley Muninger, Beth Blevins
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health
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Public Health Application of Predictive Modeling: An Example from Farm Vehicle Crashes
Estimates the risk of injury or death for farm vehicle accidents using predictive modeling for different scenarios. Identifies how the model could be used to improve public health.
Author(s): Shabbar I. Ranapurwala, Joseph E. Cavanaugh, Tracy Young, et al.
Citation: Injury Epidemiology, 6(31)
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System and the Long-term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System for FY 2020
Comments on a May 3, 2019, Federal Register proposed rule revising the hospital inpatient and long-term care hospital (LTCH) prospective payment systems. Addresses proposed changes to the hospital wage index, including rural floor calculations, uncompensated care measurements that affect disproportionate share (DSH) payments, inpatient and outpatient proposals related to drugs and devices, and the LTCH prospective payment system.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Smoking Status — United States, 2017
Examines age-adjusted prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) among current smokers, former smokers, and those who have never smoked. Includes data by urban-rural location.
Author(s): Anne G. Wheaton, Yong Liu, Janet B. Croft, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 68(24), 533-538
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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In Support of Family Caregivers: A Snapshot of Five States
Examines policies developed in Washington, Minnesota, Hawaii, Tennessee, and Maine to support family caregivers, including those in rural areas. Features demographic characteristics of the states profiled, state expenditures by the Administration for Community Living in FY2016 on older adults and caregivers, and data on state Medicaid policies affecting these groups.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Author(s): Jennifer Aufill, Julia Burgdorf, Jennifer Wolff
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Milbank Memorial Fund, The John A. Hartford Foundation
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Serving Rural America: How Health Insurance Providers Break Down Barriers to Ensure Access to Care
Highlights healthcare challenges in the rural U.S. and provides examples of how health insurance providers have helped address those challenges through telehealth, remote patient monitoring, incentives for rural providers, payment models, and targeting the opioid epidemic. Offers recommendations for state and federal policymakers related to rural recruitment, telehealth, insurance affordability, and population health.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: AHIP
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Insurer Participation in Rural Health Insurance Marketplaces: Are Some Markets Intrinsically More Competitive Than Others?
Policy position brief reporting on analyses of insurer participation data in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, Medicare Advantage, and Health Insurance Marketplaces (HIMs). Assesses to what extent participation in HIMs may be associated with prior levels of local market competition. Includes statistics on prior market competition in low-population-density counties in 2014 and 2017, and county characteristics associated with low insurer participation, with comparisons between metro and nonmetro counties.
Author(s): Abigail R. Barker, Timothy D. McBride, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Healthcare System Readiness Measurement Framework
Offers an all-hazards measurement framework to help healthcare systems evaluate their readiness to respond to disasters and emergencies. The framework was developed to cover mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery at the request of the Department of Health and Human Services. Includes some considerations specific to rural areas.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Quality Forum
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the Skilled Nursing Facility PPS for FY 2020
Comments on an April 25, 2019, Federal Register proposed rule updating payments for Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs) and SNF quality reporting. Addresses proposed changes to the wage index system that would adjust for geographical differences, potentially impacting rural areas.
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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