Fast Facts About Rural Texas
General
133 (52%) of the 254 counties in Texas are rural. Another 44 are considered "micropolitan"
Rural
- 47 have no hospital
- 68 have one hospital
- 18 have two or more
Micropolitan
- 3 have no hospital
- 31 have one hospital
- 10 have two or more
64 counties in Texas are considered to be frontier (less than 7 people per square mile)
- 24 Frontier counties (37%) have rural hospitals
- 32 Frontier counties in Texas are considered to be border counties (within 100km of an international border)
- 12 border counties (37%) have rural hospitals
Texas has a total of 65 Federally-designated Critical Access Hospitals (less than 25 beds)
Health Professional Shortage (HPSA) and Medically Underserved Areas (MUA)
- 15 counties have never had a primary care physician at any point in time.
- 131 whole-county Primary Care HPSAs and 48 partial county HPSAs
- 176 counties are designated MUAs and 47 are partial-county MUAs
- In rural Texas there are critical shortages in mental health, dental health, and pharmacy professions.
3.2 million Texans (16%) live in rural areas:
- 30% of Texans age 65 and older live in rural Texas
- 20% of rural Texans are covered by Medicaid
- 25% of rural Texans have no health insurance
Texas Hospitals: 523 hospitals in Texas
185 rural and community hospitals:
114 hospitals are 50 Beds and under
- 35% of the hospitals in Texas are rural.
- 75% of rural hospitals in Texas are governmental facilities (hospital districts, authorities, city or county) locally governed and tax supported.
- 57% of the rural hospitals in Texas are Critical Access Hospitals
- 70% of inpatients in rural hospitals (on average) are Medicare, Medicaid, or uninsured:
- 55% are on Medicare
Texas Rural Health Clinics
- Total: (2005) 333
Provider Based: 179
Free Standing: 129- Total: (2002) 355
Provider Based: 206
Free Standing: 154- Total: (1999) 444
- BBA: (1998) 565
Submitted by:
Ernest R. Parisi, Administrator and Chief Executive Officer, East Texas
Medical Center, Quitman
Information compiled from:
TORCH (Texas Organization of Rural & Community Hospitals)
THA (Texas Hospital Assoc.)
TARHC (Texas Assoc. of Rural Health Clinics)
ORHCA (Office of Rural Health Clinics Assoc.)