Research Publications

Browse the full list of research publications from the Rural Health Research Centers.

Products – Freely accessible products include policy briefs, fact sheets, full reports, chartbooks, and interactive data websites.

Journal Articles – Articles in peer-reviewed journals may require a subscription or affiliation with a subscribing library. For these publications, Gateway lists the article citation, a brief summary, a link to additional information and access to the full-text of the article, if available.

Browse Research Products:

• By Date
• By Topic
• By Research Center
• By Researcher

Five Most Recent Publications

• Regional Highlights: Changes in Hospital-Based Obstetric Care in the U.S., 2010-2024
  Rural Maternal Health Data Support and Analysis Program, University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 10/2026
  The purpose of this report is to provide highlights of hospital-level changes in obstetric care availability across the four U.S. Census regions, both over time (2010-2024) and in the most recent year of data available (2024).
• Risk Factors for Loss of Hospital-Based Obstetric Care in Rural and Urban Hospitals
  Journal Article
  Rural Maternal Health Data Support and Analysis Program, University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 09/2026
  In this study, researchers used a retrospective cohort design of all U.S. rural and urban hospitals to assess the hospital-level factors associated with obstetric unit loss, and the differences in these factors between rural and urban hospitals.
• Availability of Hospital-Based Childbirth Services and Higher-Level Neonatal Care in Rural and Urban U.S. Counties, 2010-2023
  Journal Article
  University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 09/2026
  In this paper, researchers used mixed methods (survey data, administrative data, and primary sources) to identify childbirth services and higher-level neonatal care at hospitals in both rural and urban counties.
• Annual Overview of Hospital-Level Changes in Obstetric Services Availability, 2010-2024
  Report
  Rural Maternal Health Data Support and Analysis Program, University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 09/2026
  This is the inaugural annual report on the availability of obstetric services across hospitals in the United States.
• High-Deductible Health Plans in Rural and Urban Populations: Outpatient Utilization and Out-of-Pocket Costs
  Policy Brief
  Rural and Underserved Health Research Center
  Date: 08/2026
  This policy brief explores rural-urban differences in High-Deductible Health Plan enrollment, subsequent healthcare utilization, and out-of-pocket costs.

Archived Publications

• Publication Archive
  Rural health research publications not available elsewhere online.