Research Alert: May 23, 2016

Identifying Rural Health Clinics in Medicaid Data & Characteristics of the Patients Served

Identifying Rural Health Clinics in Medicaid Data
The North Carolina Rural Health Research Program identified and tested several methods for identifying Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) in Medicaid claims data. This brief describes and compares those different methods to identifying RHCs in the Medicaid claims of four states. Six potential methods of identifying RHCs in Medicaid claims are enumerated. The recommended method should assist policy makers and researchers who are attempting to use Medicaid data to answer health policy questions related to RHCs. This research also led to the brief:

Characteristics of Medicaid Beneficiaries Who Use Rural Health Clinics
Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) (currently numbering about 4,100) have served patients from underserved rural areas for nearly 40 years. Although Medicaid is an important payer for RHCs, little is known about Medicaid patients and the services provided to them. This study describes the population who used RHC services from four Medicaid states. A substantial number of RHC users in California, Georgia, North Carolina, and Texas are identified as Medicaid enrollees, ranging from approximately 100,000 to over 800,000 people per state. Demographic characteristics vary substantially by state. Fifty to 79% of the RHC user population are coded as living in a rural area following the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy definition. However, 20% of the RHCs in these four states are not in areas defined as rural. This description of RHC users should assist policy makers and researchers in understanding and planning for the population who receives services from RHCs.

Additional Resources of Interest:

• Profile of Rural Health Clinics: Clinic & Medicare Patient Characteristics
• More information about the North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center
• More information from the Rural Health Information Hub's topic guide: Rural Health Clinics