Rural Health
Research Gateway

Chronic diseases and conditions

Current Projects

  • Changes in Medicare Fee-for-Services Health Care Expenditures in Rural and Urban Communities after Passage of the Affordable Care Act
    This project will assess changes in Medicare per-beneficiary spending across rural and urban counties from 2007 to 2020. It will examine differences in rural versus urban per-beneficiary spending on hospital inpatient, hospital outpatient, physician, and post-acute care after the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
    Research center: Rural and Minority Health Research Center
    Topics: Care management, Chronic diseases and conditions, Health disparities and health equity, Health services, Hospitals and clinics, Public health
  • Disparities in Screening, Prevention, and Management of Cardiovascular Disease in Rural and Urban Primary Care
    This study will use a large national primary care registry to compare cardiovascular disease (CVD) screening, prevention, and management quality measures between rural and urban primary care practices. It will also assess for disparities by patient composition (race/ethnicity, insurance) of the practice.
    Research center: Rural and Underserved Health Research Center
    Topics: Care management, Chronic diseases and conditions, Health disparities and health equity, Health promotion and disease prevention, Health services, Minority health, Physicians, Quality
  • Identifying High-Need Counties for Resource Planning
    The primary aim of this project is to use data examining health care infrastructure, chronic disease prevalence, and the socioeconomic environment to create a metric for classifying rural counties based on needs and resources.
    Research center: Rural and Minority Health Research Center
    Topics: Chronic diseases and conditions, Diabetes, Health disparities and health equity, Healthcare access, Maternal health, Obesity, Oral health, Physicians, Poverty, Public health, Rural statistics and demographics, Social determinants of health, Uninsured and underinsured, Workforce
  • Racial and Ethnic Disparities Shouldered by Rural Americans: Evidence from the Peer-Reviewed and Grey Literature on the Five Leading Causes of Death
    A systematic review of peer-reviewed and grey literature will explore the role of racial and ethnic disparities in the five leading causes of death. The project will provide historical and context setting perspectives on the contributors to the five leading causes of death, particularly as they involve the intersection of rurality and non-majority demographic identities.
    Research center: Southwest Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Cancer, Chronic diseases and conditions, Health disparities and health equity, Minority health
  • Rural-Urban Differences in the Prevalence and Impact of Chronic Pain
    Limited existing evidence suggests that chronic pain may be more widespread and disabling in rural than in urban populations, and that rural residents may lack access to adequate pain treatment resources. This study will explore rural-urban differences in chronic pain prevalence, impacts, and management, and inform policies to address any identified disparities.
    Research center: Maine Rural Health Research Center
    Topic: Chronic diseases and conditions
  • Rural/Urban Differences in Forgoing Health Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic
    Several surveys conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic showed that adults delayed or skipped healthcare services during the initial months of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examines changes in healthcare utilization for primary and preventative care among rural and urban Medicare fee-for-service enrollees since the COVID-19 pandemic.
    Research center: Rural Health Equity Research Center
    Topics: Aging, Care management, Chronic diseases and conditions, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), Diabetes, Health disparities and health equity, Health promotion and disease prevention, Health services, Medicare, Mental and behavioral health, Minority health, Telehealth
  • Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) Penetration in Rural vs. Urban Healthcare Settings in the U.S.
    This study will include an analysis of 2018/2019 Medicare, Medicaid and Commercial claims to compare the penetration of Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) and its different components in rural compared to urban healthcare settings. Within the overarching analysis, the study team will examine the type of interventions conducted within the SBIRT framework stratified by provider type, healthcare setting, and rural and urban provider ZIP codes. Findings will be analyzed within the context of county-level substance use rates, historical enactment of state SBIRT billing codes, overdoses, and alcohol poisoning-based hospital admissions contrasting trends in SBIRT administration with a proxy for community need.
    Research center: Rural Health Equity Research Center
    Topics: Chronic diseases and conditions, Health promotion and disease prevention, Medicaid and CHIP, Medicare, Mental and behavioral health, Private health insurance, Public health, Substance use and treatment
  • Specialist Physicians in the Rural and Urban U.S.: Supply, Distribution, and Access
    This project will describe the geographic distribution (rural/urban, regional, and intra-rural) of specialist physicians who care for patients experiencing conditions that account for the top four leading causes of rural mortality. It will also explore how patients in rural communities that lack these specialists obtain needed care.
    Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Cancer, Care management, Chronic diseases and conditions, Frontier health, Health disparities and health equity, Health services, Healthcare access, Physicians, Social determinants of health, Telehealth, Workforce
  • The Intersection of Race/Ethnicity and Rurality in Pediatric Asthma: Trends and Predictors
    Little is known about the extent to which the intersection of race/ethnicity and rurality plays a role in the disparities associated with asthma outcomes, particularly among children. Using the National Inpatient Sample from 2015 – 2019, this project identified trends in pediatric asthma-related hospitalizations and the significant predictors of them, particularly by considering interaction terms.
    Research center: Southwest Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Children and adolescents, Chronic diseases and conditions, Health disparities and health equity