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Rural Health
Resources by Type: Document

Community-Engaged Dissemination and Implementation of an Evidence-Based Health Promotion Intervention for Native American Families: "Delivery of Turtle Island Tales to Promote Family Wellness" Protocol
Study protocol for the implementation and assessment of Turtle Island Tales, a culturally-grounded obesity prevention intervention for Native American families, in rural and frontier counties in Montana, Oregon, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
Author(s): Emily J. Tomayko, Alexandra K. Adams, Teresa Warne, James L. Merle, Paul A. Estabrooks
Citation: Implementation Science Communications, 6, 126
Date: 11/2025
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Tobacco-Related Knowledge Among Employees at Substance Use Treatment and Medical Healthcare Centers Serving Rural and Medically Underserved Patients with Substance Use Disorders in Texas, USA
Examines tobacco knowledge before and after receipt of a brief tobacco cessation training intervention among healthcare providers at substance use treatment centers and medical healthcare centers in rural and medically underserved areas of Texas. Details gaps in provider training related to the care of co-incident tobacco use and substance misuse disorders.
Author(s): Jedidiah A. Feyisetan, Maggie Britton, Tzuan A. Chen, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 22(11), 1701
Date: 11/2025
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Rural Missourians' Perspectives on Pain: "I Like To Be in Control of My Life"
Explores Missourians' attitudes toward pain and pharmacological and non-pharmacological pain management via interviews of 25 rural Missourians. Discusses how pain treatment is influenced by pain medication stigma, desire for self-sufficiency, and other cultural factors.
Author(s): Karla T. Washington, Klaudia Kukulka, Archana Bharadwaj, et al.
Citation: Health & Place, 96, 103561
Date: 11/2025
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A Novel Approach to Incorporate Frontier Areas Into Urban–Rural Geographic Classifications: Integrated Metropolitan-to-Frontier Area Codes
Explores an effort to develop a rural-urban classification that captures the remoteness of frontier areas. Details the tract-level Integrated Metropolitan-to-Frontier Area Codes (tlMFAC), a combination of the USDA's Frontier and Remote Area (FAR) definition and the Rural-Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) Codes. Discusses the conceptual framework for tlMFAC and the census tract-level results of applying the definition nationally.
Author(s): Brody J. Gibson, Elizabeth Dobis, John Cromartie, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 41(4), e70102
Date: 11/2025
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Calendar Year 2026 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical Center Final Rule (CMS-1834-FC)
Fact sheet providing an overview of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) final rule regarding updates and changes to the Medicare payments for hospital outpatient and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) services for calendar year 2026. Summarizes provisions regarding changes to hospital price transparency; Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) and partial hospital program rate setting; updates to the Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting (OQR), Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting (ASCQR), and Rural Emergency Hospital Quality Reporting (REHQR) Programs; hospital quality start ratings; and more.
Date: 11/2025
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Current and Maximum Acceptable Travel Times to Primary Care Among US Older Adults
Explores the threshold of travel time at which it becomes a barrier to primary care access and for which groups. Uses data from a study conducted in February 2025 of adults age 50 and older. Features demographics and statistics with breakdowns by urban, suburban, and rural or other areas.
Author(s): Tabasa Ozawa, Ying Liu, Soeren Mattke
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 8(11), e2545280
Date: 11/2025
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Gaps in Artificial Intelligence Research for Rural Health in the United States: A Scoping Review
Presents a scoping review exploring the extent of research on artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare in rural communities. Discusses the application of AI in rural US healthcare and challenges that limit the development, implementation, or evaluation of AI in the rural areas.
Author(s): Katherine E. Brown, Sharon E. Davis
Citation: Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association
Date: 11/2025
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Family Physician Workforce Trends: The Toll on Rural Communities
Analyzes distribution of family physicians between 2017 and 2023 to identify trends in practice location. Includes analysis of physician demographic characteristics, rurality, and region. Discusses the impact of a reduction in the family physician workforce on rural communities.
Author(s): Colleen T. Fogarty, Hoon Byun, Alison N. Huffstetler
Citation: The Annals of Family Medicine, 26(6), 535-538
Date: 11/2025
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RHCs and CAHs Participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP): Characteristics of the Providers and Communities
Describes the characteristics of Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) and Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) currently participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) in 2023. Compares CAH and RHC characteristics by MSSP participation, ownership status, and free-standing versus provider-based RHC status.
Author(s): Edmer Lazaro, Dan Shane, Fred Ullrich, Keith Mueller
Date: 11/2025
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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A New Rural Blueprint: Strategic Partnerships That Keep Care Local
Discusses the Wisconsin High Value Network (WHVN), a clinically integrated network (CIN) focused on value-based care arrangements, data sharing, and quality improvement initiatives. Describes WHVN's strategic partnerships, governance, specialty care network, and more.
Date: 11/2025
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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