Rural Health Disparities – Resources

Disparities in Health and Health Care: 5 Key Questions and Answers
Defines health and healthcare disparities and discusses the social and economic inequities that drive them. Provides details on the current status of health disparities in the U.S., the importance of addressing them, and what the federal government is doing to alleviate health disparities. Includes discussion of rural health disparities.
Author(s): Nambi Ndugga, Samantha Artiga
Date: 04/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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The Development of Accessible and Sustainable Transgender Health Education for Rural-Serving Medical Providers in Appalachia
Presents the results of a project to develop and implement a cultural competency training program for rural-serving medical residents focused on transgender primary healthcare in South Central Appalachia – an area that is medically under-resourced and experiences intersectional discrimination. The Kern Model medical curriculum and data from clinic stakeholders, residents, and transgender community members were utilized in the development of this training program. Highlights the value of virtual training providing increased accessibility for rural clinics.
Author(s): Rebecca Altschuler, Abbey K. Mann
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 23(2), 7827
Date: 04/2023
Type: Document
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Inequitable Access to General and Behavioral Healthcare in the US During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Role for Telehealth?
Examines general and behavioral healthcare access and disparities during the first year of the pandemic, using data from the 2019–2020 U.S. National Alcohol Survey and its COVID follow-up survey conducted January 30 to March 28, 2021. Explores the role of telehealth in providing an important bridge to healthcare for certain medically underserved groups during the pandemic. Features statistics with breakdowns by urban and rural location.
Author(s): Nina Mulia, Yu Ye, Thomas K. Greenfield, et al.
Citation: Preventive Medicine, 169
Date: 04/2023
Type: Document
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Health Care Coverage, Affordability, and Access Among Rural and Urban Adults Ages 50 to 64
Examines differences in healthcare coverage, affordability, and access trends among rural and urban adults aged 50-64 between 2012 and 2019. Explores possible factors driving healthcare coverage disparities. Offers policy recommendations to improve access to coverage and affordable healthcare among older adults, especially those in rural areas.
Author(s): Olivia Dean, Beth Carter, Robert C. Saunders, et al.
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: AARP Public Policy Institute, KNG Health
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Rural Working-Age Adults Report More Cost Barriers to Health Care
Policy brief examining rural-urban differences in affordability of care and cost-saving strategies among adults ages 18-64. Features demographics and statistics on prescription drug cost-saving measures and difficulty affording medical care in the past year, with breakdowns by rural and urban location.
Author(s): Erika C. Ziller, Carly Milkowski, Amanda Burgess
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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Assessing Geographic Variability in Key Indicators of Air Quality: A Rural vs. Urban Comparison of Pollution and Socio-Economic Factors
Results of a study to examine rates of air pollution between rural and urban census tracts, using data from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Air Quality System web portal for the years 2000-2020. Features statistics including mean concentrations of fine particulate matter air pollution (PM2.5) and ozone in rural and urban census tracts, and maps showing concentrations of PM2.5 for census tracts by EPA region.
Author(s): Daniel Kilpatrick, Jeremy Cothran, Stella Self, et al.
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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Rural and Urban Differences in Insurance Coverage at Prepregnancy, Birth, and Postpartum
Examines insurance coverage in rural and urban women at prepregnancy, birth, and postpartum. Analyzes 154,992 postpartum individuals in the U.S. part of the 2016-2019 PRAMS (Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System) and breaks down rural versus urban data by age, race/ethnicity, income, state Medicaid expansion, education, marital status, chronic disease, and more. Discusses disparities in insurance for rural and urban women.
Author(s): Lindsay K. Admon, Jamie R. Daw, Julia D. Interrante, et al.
Citation: Obstetrics & Gynecology, 14(3), 570-581
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
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Cancer Disproportionately Impacts Adults Living in Rural Areas
Analyzes cancer disparities in metro and nonmetro areas across the U.S. as well as select states that did not expand Medicaid coverage: Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. Utilizes multiple data sources to examine cancer incidence, mortality, and survival rates in metro and nonmetro areas.
Date: 01/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: The National Grange
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Rural–Urban Disparities in Adverse Maternal Outcomes in the United States, 2016–2019
Analyzes maternal mortality and admissions to the intensive care unit (ICU) in rural and urban areas in the U.S. between 2016 and 2019. Utilizes Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (WONDER) to examine rural versus urban maternal health disparities.
Author(s): Katharine A. Harrington, Natalie A. Cameron, Kasen Culler, William A. Grobman, Sadiya S. Khan
Citation: American Journal of Public Health, 113(2)
Date: 01/2023
Type: Document
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Rural Healthy People 2030
Presents literature reviews of 20 rural public health priority topics identified through a survey of rural stakeholders. Reviews the scope of each topic, discusses related goals and objectives from the national Healthy People 2030 initiative, identifies affected populations, highlights interventions and solutions, and more. Topics include mental health, substance use, social determinants of health, access to care, quality of care, chronic health conditions, and COVID-19.
Author(s): Alva O. Ferdinand, Jane N. Bolin, Timothy Callaghan, et al.
Date: 2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Southwest Rural Health Research Center
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