The report from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials describes ways in which communities can use the funding to build community health worker programs.

  A program in rural Tennessee experimented by supplying local food producers with knowledge and training about how to accept payment provided by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).  After a workshop informing farmers about the benefits of accepting SNAP, the program provided hands-on support for navigating the application process for Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT), the system by which low-income consumers who receive SNAP benefits can purchase food at local farmers’ markets.  See the Funding section below for a new opportunity, USDA’s Farmers Market Promotion Program. 

In this cohort study of 17,428 Medicaid-enrolled adults with an emergency department encounter for opioid use disorder, the buprenorphine treatment Opioid Hospital Quality Improvement Program (O-HQIP) pathway was associated with significantly increased prescription fills for buprenorphine within 30 days of discharge.

In this survey study of 4,691 Medicare beneficiaries, 17 percent receiving care from practices offering both video and telephone visits reported that they were personally offered telephone visits only; 43 percent of those who were personally offered both video and telephone visits chose telephone visits. Being offered and choosing telephone visits were associated with less technology access and lack of video experience; those with Hispanic ethnicity or limited English proficiency were more likely to be offered telephone visits but not more likely to choose them.

The annual ranking of health for nearly every county in the nation takes a closer look at the way health relates to opportunities people have to participate in their communities.  The analysts examined two elements of civic health: 1) civic infrastructure, which includes the spaces such as schools, parks, and libraries; and 2) civic participation, which includes the ways people engage in community life. While their research found examples of rural towns with a strong sense of community, there was more evidence that policies and practices that disconnect people from each other, from opportunity, and from the land – for example, racial segregation and legal action to terminate Tribal rights – were more often happening in rural areas.  The report devotes a lot to voting, volunteering, and responding to the Census as important examples of civic participation and provides the data to show a direct link between civic health and population health.  See Policy Updates below for recent changes brought by the 2020 Census.

The latest QuickStats article published by the National Center for Health Statistics investigates Rates of Death Due to Unintentional Injury from Fire or Flames, by Sex and Urbanization Level — National Vital Statistics System, United States, 2021.

In 2021, the rates of death due to unintentional injury from fire or flames were 1.3 per 100,000 population among males and 0.8 among females and were higher for males than for females at each level of urbanization. Rates among males were lowest in large fringe (0.8) and large central (0.9) metropolitan areas and then increased with decreasing urbanization to 3.0 in noncore areas. Rates among females were lowest in large central metropolitan areas (0.5) and increased with decreasing urbanization to 1.8 in noncore areas.

The University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute County Health Rankings has released their annual ranking of health for nearly every county in the nation.

The ranking takes a closer look at the way health relates to opportunities people have to participate in their communities. The ranking considers civic infrastructure (schools, parks, libraries, etc.) and civic participation (ways people engage in community life).

For rural communities, the research found a strong sense of community, but policies and practices disconnect people from each other.  The report also found that in areas with long-standing disinvestment, such as rural economies, there are fewer social and economic opportunities, leading to lower healthy measures of life and quality of life.

New Brief Highlights Newly Released Vintage 2022 Population Estimates

The U.S. Census Bureau released the vintage 2022 population estimates for U.S counties and Puerto Rico. We’ve created a brief focused on the changes to Pennsylvania’s population. Read more on our Research Briefs page.

New Legislative Resources Available

New resources including maps and data profiles for Congressional and Legislative Districts are available on our site at: https://pasdc.hbg.psu.edu/Data/Legislative. The Census Bureau released new social, economic, housing, and demographic statistics for the 2022 state legislative districts. The four Data Profiles are available for all Pennsylvania Legislative Districts in the upper and lower chambers.

Register now for 2023 PA Data User Conference

This year will feature keynote and plenary sessions related to state and regional efforts to make data open and accessible. Concurrent sessions will feature two tracks: 1) U.S. Census Bureau staff providing updates on Census data products and tools as well as data analysts and 2) researchers across the state sharing applied uses of demographic data to better improve decision-making. Register at: https://pasdcconference.org/.

Census Bureau Updates

• New Work-From-Home Data by Race and Ethnicity Now Available

This month, the U.S. Census Bureau released preliminary data from the Annual Business Survey (ABS) showing the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on businesses. The tables explore work from home status and business characteristics such as impact of the pandemic, financial health, outstanding debt, and expectations for continued operations. Click here to explore options for utilizing the latest data. 

• ACCESS BROADBAND Dashboard

The U.S. Census Bureau and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) unveiled the first release of their joint interactive dashboard that allows users to compare U.S. state, county and census tract-level maps displaying broadband availability and adoption statistics to maps of select social and economic indicators. Click here to learn more and explore this interactive dashboard.

• New Report: Women and Men Both Experienced Changes in Occupations During COVID-19

Click here to read this recently released report that focuses on differences in occupational employment shifts for women and men during the COVID pandemic.

  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.