Rural Americans experience more chronic health conditions such as diabetes and heart disease than urban and suburban residents, have greater difficulties accessing high-quality care, and from 2014 millions more of them will likely participate in Medicaid and government-subsidized insurance, according to a new paper released today by the UnitedHealth Center for Health Reform & Modernization.
At the same time, more use of technology, such as broadband access that would increase telehealth solutions, can help ease strain on the system and further promote healthier outcomes in rural communities.
The paper, titled “Modernizing Rural Health Care: Coverage, Quality and Innovation,” explores how health reform implementation, particularly health insurance expansion, will increase the need for innovative care models and points to technology and a stronger role for rural primary care as promising solutions. It also reports the results of a new Harris Interactive survey of 2,000 patients and more than 1,000 primary physicians in rural and urban areas.
“The next few years will be times of considerable stress on rural health care, but also times of great opportunity, since across the country there are already impressive examples of high-quality care, tailored to the distinctive needs of the local community,” said Simon Stevens, UnitedHealth Group executive vice president and chairman of the UnitedHealth Center for Health Reform & Modernization. “The challenge for all involved in rural America now is to build on that track record of innovation and self-reliance, so as to ensure that all Americans – wherever they live – can live their lives to the healthiest and fullest extent possible.”
