Health Policy at the Center for Rural Affairs

The Center for Rural Affairs history in health policy began in 1994 with a task force of rural health professionals, farmers, small business owners, religious leaders and other rural residents studying rural health care access. The task force found that the self-employed and working poor, disproportionately represented in rural areas, are not well served by the health care system. It recommended a greater role for non-physician health professionals, expanded regional health care planning and public health services in Nebraska, and reforms to health care networks to meet the unique circumstances of remote rural areas. A PDF of their report is available here.

In 2005, we published Health Care in Rural America, a policy brief examining disparities in health care access between rural and non-rural areas.

Access Project Reports

The Center for Rural Affairs assisted The Access Project and acted as a resource for a series of issue briefs based on surveys of farm and ranch operators in seven Great Plains states; the results of the surveys find that many farm and ranch operators face burdensome health care costs that threaten their future financial well-being. You can download the three briefs below:

Issue Brief 1: Overview of Findings
Issue Brief 2: How Farmers and Ranchers Get Health Insurance and What They Spend for Health Care
Issue Brief 3: Who Experiences Financial Hardship Because of Health Care Costs?

Other Releated Reports, Newsletter Articles and Writing

11/05
Addressing Rural Mental Health

12/05
Church Role in Mental Health for Rural Communities

Health Care Challenges for Small and Micro Businesses
Issue Brief Version

1/06
Taking Care of Our Own: A Good Mental Health Model

7/06
Government Panel Recommends Universal Health Care Coverage

10/07
Health Insurance for Farmers

7/08
Studies Find Life Expectancy for Rural Women Declining

8/08
Child Health Care Rankings
Fixing the Broken Health Care System