- Native Americans Have Shorter Life Spans, and It's Not Just Due to Lack of Health Care
- Promotoras Play Essential Role in Connecting Farmworkers with Health Care in Rural NorCal
- Using Medicaid to Address Young People's Mental Health Needs in School Settings
- Across the Country, Amish Populations Are on the Rise
- Sunsets, Wildlife and Limited Care: Challenges of Aging in Place in Rural America
- City-Country Mortality Gap Widens amid Persistent Holes in Rural Health Care Access
- Tribal Environmental Impact Network
- Minnesota's Rural Ambulance Providers Look to State Capitol for Their Own Lifeline
- Biden-Harris Administration Takes Action to Support the Primary Care Workforce
- Over 3,000 Homes on the Navajo Nation Receive Accurate Addresses for the First Time
- Rural Population Grows for Second Consecutive Year
- Rapides Library Offers Telehealth to a Town Without Doctors
- Rural Infection Preventionists Need Community Support
- New Federal Health IT Strategy Sets Sights on a Heathier, More Innovative, and More Equitable Health Care Experience
- Upcoming Virtual Workshop: Partnering for Success: Building Partnerships for Health Workforce Training and Education
Overdose Treatment is Now Available Without a Prescription
Yesterday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that the makers of Narcan, an opioid overdose treatment, have the agency’s approval to make the drug widely available over the counter (OTC). Narcan is the brand name of the drug naloxone, a fast-acting overdose reversal. Until now, availability varied by state – typically restricted to licensed health care providers, approved opioid overdose programs, and first responders. This is an important consideration for rural counties given that research shows that these areas are nearly three times more likely than metropolitan counties to be a low-dispensing county for naloxone.
Here is an Analysis of an Innovative Approach to Target Rural Communities in Public Health Funding
In 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention carved out $427 million in state funding to focus on combatting COVID-19 in rural communities as part of a multibillion-dollar national initiative to address COVID-19-related health disparities among at-risk and underserved populations. This case study by the FORHP-Supported Southwest Rural Health Research Center explores the circumstances around this emphasis on rural America by interviewing relevant decision-makers and key stakeholders.
The Challenge to Human Services in Rural Communities
A sweeping report from the Administration of Children and Families (ACF) delivers insight into the rural-specific barriers to the agency’s programs – e.g., for housing, early childhood, and family development, Healthy Marriage, and Responsible Fatherhood. Some of these barriers are well known and understood, such as distance to services and negative perceptions of public assistance. But through qualitative and quantitative data collection, ACF researchers find details of how factors such as race, digital access, and housing are realized in the rural context and hinder the effectiveness of human services.
How Can Community Paramedicine Improve Rural Health Outcomes?
The Commonwealth Fund examines programs that send paramedics and other staff to peoples’ homes to stabilize their health and avoid the need for 911 calls down the line. The report cites 129 programs in the U.S., with more than 40 of these in rural areas.
New Recommendations for Elder Care Have Been Released
The National Advisory Committee for Rural Health & Human Services, which advises the HHS Secretary on rural issues, has released a new policy brief and recommendations on how to expand the Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly in rural areas.
New Research Supporting Indicators of Familial Social Support by Rurality and Gender Identity
Among the key findings in this brief from the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center: rural transgender adults are the least likely of any group to “strongly” or “very strongly” agree that they get the familial support they need (16.3% of rural transgender adults, compared with 30.4% of urban transgender adults, 61.4% of rural cisgender adults, and 59.3% of urban cisgender adults).
New COVID-19 Vaccination Rates Have Been Released
From the RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis: In December 2022, the proportion of the population ages 12+ with a completed primary COVID-19 vaccination (i.e., have a second dose of a two-dose vaccine or one dose of a single-dose vaccine) was 75.5 percent in metropolitan counties, 60.9 percent in micropolitan counties, and 56.8 percent in noncore counties.
New Information Releseaed for Critical Access Hospitals.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently published a new fact sheet summarizing the Medicare rules and regulations for Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). This latest version includes the revised CAH location requirement relative to other facilities to include areas with only secondary roads available and the requirement to inform the patient or the representative of their rights before starting or ending care and establish a grievance process.
Here You Can Read the Updated Certification Criteria for Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics
This month, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released the updated certification criteria for Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHCs), a model designed to ensure access to coordinated comprehensive behavioral health care. This new document follows from a draft version of SAMHSA released in December. SAMHSA also posted a summary of changes between the new criteria and the previous version and deadlines for implementation of the updated criteria. Currently, there are over 500 CCBHCs operating across the country, including some CCBHCs in rural areas.
2022 County Total Population Estimates Released
The U.S. Census Bureau released today estimates of the total population as of July 1, 2022 at the county level which include both county totals as well as components of population change: births, deaths, and migration.
The Pennsylvania State Data Center’s latest brief explores changes in total county population from the April 1, 2020 Estimates Base to the July 1, 2022 Population Estimate. Key highlights include:
- Twenty-seven counties grew in population while forty declined
- Cumberland County remained fastest growing county since 2020 (+3.5%)
- Philadelphia (-36,541) and Allegheny (-17,332) counties saw largest losses
Click here to read more in this month’s brief.