Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
Completed Projects
Achieving Equity in Disproportionate Share Payments to Rural Hospitals: An Examination of MedPAC's Revised Disproportionate Share Formula
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Hospitals and clinics,
Legislation and regulation
Advantages and Disadvantages of Hospital-Based Emergency Medical Services in Rural Areas
This project sought to clarify issues surrounding hospital decisions to acquire and maintain ownership of community ambulance services.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Emergency medical services (EMS),
Hospitals and clinics
Burdens of HIPAA on Rural Hospitals
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Hospitals and clinics,
Legislation and regulation
Capital Needs of Small Rural Hospitals
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Capital funding,
Hospitals and clinics
Cash Flow of Small Rural Hospitals: The Impact of the Medicare Outpatient Prospective Payment System
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Hospitals and clinics,
Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS)
Comparison of Coding and Billing Practices Among Selected Small Rural and Urban Hospital Outpatient Departments
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Hospitals and clinics,
Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS)
Cost of Ambulance Transports for Low-Volume Providers in Rural Areas and Its Implications for Medicare Reimbursement Policy
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Emergency medical services (EMS),
Health care financing,
Health policy,
Medicare
Counting Rural Health Care Facilities: A Moving Target?
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Home health,
Hospitals and clinics,
Medicare,
Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS)
Declining Access to Hospital-based Obstetric Services in Rural Areas: Causes and Impact
This study examines the declining availability of hospital-based obstetric services in rural areas from the mid-1980s to the early 2000s. It examines potential causes for this trend and explores the effects of medical malpractice reforms.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health policy,
Hospitals and clinics,
Legislation and regulation,
Maternal and child health,
Women
Determinants of Quality of Care in Rural Communities: How Does The Health Care Infrastructure Affect Quality of Care in Rural America?
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health services,
Quality,
Workforce
Do We Need a Rural Payment Differential Under the Medicare Ambulance Fee Schedule?
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Emergency medical services (EMS),
Health care financing,
Medicare
Effective Strategies for Achieving HIPAA Compliance Among Rural Hospitals
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Hospitals and clinics,
Legislation and regulation
Financial Impact of Outpatient Payment Reform on Rural Hospitals
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Hospitals and clinics,
Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS)
Financing Rural Public Health Activities in Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
This project describes the federal-state funding streams for selected local public health activities in the area of chronic disease prevention and health promotion, and assesses potential barriers to program implementation in less populated, local areas of a state.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Chronic diseases and conditions,
Health care financing,
Health promotion and disease prevention,
Public health
Home Care in Rural America
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Home health,
Medicare,
Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS)
Impact of CAH Conversion on Hospital Costs and Mix of Services
This study examined Medicare Cost Report and claims data for hospitals before and after CAH conversion in order to better understand changes in hospital costs associated with CAH conversion, factors associated with any cost growth, and changes in the mix of services provided by the facility.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Hospital Flexibility Program,
Health care financing,
Health services
Impact of the Home Health PPS on Access in Rural America
This study is designed to help policymakers understand whether patterns of home care use in rural communities have been affected by the PPS. Analyses will provide information on the characteristics of the patients served, the number and mix of services rendered, and quality of care.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Home health,
Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS)
Impact of the Proposed Medicare Prospective Payment Reforms on Rural Hospitals in Selected States
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Hospitals and clinics,
Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS)
Investments in Health Information Technology by Rural Hospitals
This study involved a national survey of rural hospitals conducted in late spring 2006 to gather data about readiness to adopt health IT, current use of different technologies, perceptions about the benefits and barriers to health IT adoption, future implementation plans, use of Federal programs designed to facilitate IT adoption, and interest in various health IT policy options.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health information technology,
Hospitals and clinics
Involvement of State Offices of Rural Health in Emergency Preparedness Activities
This project will follow-up with the state offices of rural health (SORH) to identify their current involvement with preparedness in rural areas, particularly in the use of funds earmarked to bioterrorism preparedness.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topic:
Emergency preparedness
Medicare Beneficiary Outcomes in Rural and Urban Home Health Agencies
This study will compare the performance of rural and urban home care agencies, and identify agency characteristics that contribute to better patient care outcomes.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Home health,
Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS),
Quality
Medicare Payment for Post-Acute Care Transfers
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Health policy,
Hospitals and clinics
National Rural Hospital Flexibility Program Tracking Project: Emergency Medical Services
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Hospital Flexibility Program,
Emergency medical services (EMS),
Networking and collaboration
National Rural Hospital Flexibility Program Tracking Project: Perceptions of Community Physicians
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Hospital Flexibility Program,
Physicians
Options for Structuring Disproportionate Share (DSH) Payments to Account for Uncompensated Care: Impact on Rural Hospitals
This study will identify options for development of an equitable DSH payment adjustment that accounts for hospital uncompensated care costs and determine the financial impact of each of these proposals on rural hospitals, using simulations with data from Washington, West Virginia, Texas, and Iowa.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Health policy,
Hospitals and clinics
Post-Acute Care: A Rural and Urban Comparison
This multi-phase analysis examines whether discharge patterns for and use of post-acute care services by rural and urban hospitalized Medicare beneficiaries differ and, if they do, what are the sources of these different patterns.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Home health,
Long term care,
Medicare
Public Health System Performance Measurement: Are Standards Applicable to Rural Communities?
This project aims to increase understanding of how public health governance affects the structure of public health services, and how this in turn influences the strategies adopted for meeting community public health needs in rural areas.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Legislation and regulation,
Public health
Rapid Response: Elimination of Bad Debt Payments to Rural PPS Hospitals
The purpose of this project is to examine: (1) the extent to which elimination of Medicare Bad Debt payments will reduce reimbursement to rural PPS hospitals and (2) how rural hospitals would respond to this reduction in reimbursement.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Hospitals and clinics,
Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS)
Recent History of Federal Funding for EMS in the United States
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Emergency medical services (EMS),
Health care financing,
Health services
Roadmap for the Adoption of Health Information Technology in Rural Communities
This project developed a resource document intended to help rural health care providers of all types as they think about whether an investment in health information technology makes sense for them and work through various implementation issues. The document was distributed at the September 2006 conference entitled "Health Information Technology: A Rural Provider’s Roadmap to Quality," sponsored by ORHP.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health information technology,
Health services
Rural Dimensions of Medicare Payment Policies
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health policy,
Medicare
Rural Hospital Participation in the 340B Drug Discount Program
The 340B drug discount program enables certain types of safety net organizations to obtain deeply discounted medications, at prices below the 'best price' typically offered to Medicaid agencies. This study used telephone interviews and mail surveys to explore the experiences that rural hospitals have had in seeking 340B eligibility status.
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Hospitals and clinics,
Pharmacy and prescription drugs
Rural Perspective on Restructuring Medicare
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Medicare,
Pharmacy and prescription drugs
Understanding the Roles of the Rural Hospital in Responding to Bioterrorist Attacks and Other Emergencies
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Emergency preparedness,
Hospitals and clinics
Volunteer Labor and the Organizational Structure of Rural Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Providers
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Emergency medical services (EMS),
Workforce
What is Causing the Increase in Rural Hospital Costs?
Funder:
Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
Topics:
Health care financing,
Hospitals and clinics
