Rural Health

The Rural Health topic includes research on the health of rural populations and rural areas within the United States. Rural areas are defined by the Health Resources and Services Administration.

On the whole, the roughly 1 in 5 Americans living in rural parts of the United States have a higher risk of disease and worse health outcomes than their urban counterparts. Many factors contribute to this reality. Access to health care is more challenging in rural communities, due to longer drive times, fewer transportation options, economic limitations, and fewer available health care providers. People in rural areas also tend to have higher smoking rates and more commonly experience high blood pressure and obesity.