Rural health care is struggling. Right now, over 14 percent of North Carolinians live in primary care shortage areas. Over 30 percent of counties find difficulty accessing mental health needs, while a quarter are lacking an obstetrician.
It’s worth noting that ‘rural’ is a debatable term, since the federal government defines it 17 different ways. To provide better context as to which areas of the state are commonly defined as ‘rural,’ the dark green regions shown in the map below share more federal and state definitions compared to the lighter green regions.
Source: University of North Carolina, Shep’s Center for Health Services Research.
The struggle has prompted legislators to form a committee that focuses on improving health care access for North Carolinians who reside in these areas. Earlier this week, the committee met for the first time to listen to health care experts and advocates present an overview of North Carolina’s rural health care landscape.
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