Rural Policy Research Institute (RUPRI) Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Current Projects
Analysis Related to Health Care Reform Issues
The RUPRI Center is prepared to provide analysis of elements and/or effects of proposed or enacted health reform legislation and/or regulations to implement changes mandated by legislation.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Health policy,
Health services
Assessing the Community Impact of the MMA
This project will measure the community-level impacts of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) and will provide feedback to policymakers regarding the impact of the MMA on its policy targets (providers and beneficiaries), in the context of rural places.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health policy,
Legislation and regulation,
Medicare,
Medicare Part D
Do Communities Make a Difference in Access? A National Study
This project will examine the effect of community-level resources on an individual's access to health care, particularly whether urban and rural individuals' access to health care differs, given community differences.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topic:
Health services
Examining Recent Trends and Variation in Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions-related Hospital Expenditures of Rural Americans with Different Health Insurance Coverage and Status
This study documents the national time-trend and regional variation of rural Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions (ACSC)-related hospital expenditures by patient insurance coverage/status. The study will also compare the pattern of difference in the ACSC-related expenditures of rural patients with different insurance coverage/status by patient demographic and economic characteristics as well as hospital characteristics.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Chronic diseases and conditions,
Health care financing,
Health insurance and the uninsured,
Health services
Examining the Applicability of the AHRQ's Inpatient Quality Indicators to Rural Hospitals and the Implications of the Relationship Between the Indicators and Financial Measures for Medicare Payment Policies
This study will investigate how the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's inpatient quality indicators can be applied to rural hospitals and will explore the application of those indicators in answering relevant policy questions.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Health policy,
Hospitals and clinics,
Quality
Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug Plans in Rural Areas
The rapid growth in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, as well as evidence that MA plans are being paid significantly more than traditional fee-for-service Medicare, has created the impetus for reform of the MA program, especially reductions in payment to MA plans. This project will continue the RUPRI Center’s work in tracking and analyzing the trends in MA plan enrollment in rural areas, including changes in types of plans.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Medicare,
Medicare Advantage (MA)
Patient-Centered Medical Home: A Model for Rural Physician Practices and Communities?
Rural practices will need to meet the expectations inherent in the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) model or lose any payment advantage that comes with participating as a PCMH. The goal of this project is to assess rural readiness to adopt services seen as part of a PCMH.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health services,
Physicians
