Designated Shortage and Underserved Areas in Virginia

HPSA Maps | MUA Maps

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Health Professional Shortage Areas

The federal Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) designation identifies an area or population as having a shortage of dental, mental, and primary health care providers. HPSA designation are used to qualify for state and federal programs aimed at increasing primary care services to underserved areas and populations.

A HPSA designation is based on three criteria, established by federal regulation:

• The area must be rational for delivery of health services
• A specified population-to-provider ratio representing shortage must be exceeded within the area as evidenced by more than 3,500 persons per physician (or 3,000 persons per physician if the area has "high needs")
• Health care resources in surrounding areas must be unavailable because of distance,over utilization or access barriers

Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) have shortages of primary medical care, dental or mental health providers and may be geographic (a county or service area), demographic (low income population) or institutional (comprehensive health center, federally qualified health center or other public facility)

Programs Using HPSA Designations Include:

• Virginia Loan Repayment Program
• Conrad 30 J-1 Visa Waiver Program
• National Health Service Corps
• Medicare Incentive Payments | Virginia Payments
• Rural Health Clinic Act
• Area Health Education Center Programs

Related Resources:

• HPSA database dictionary of terms and abbreviations
• The HPSA Database Updated weekly
• Virginia HPSA Demographics:  Primary Care  |  Mental   |  Dental
• National Association of Counties Search for the county in which a city is located
• Bureau of Primary Health Care U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration
• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): Overview of Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA)/ Physician Shortage Area (PSA) Physician Bonuses
• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): Guide for Using the HPSA/PSA Web Page

Health Professional Shortage Areas in Virginia

Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas (MHPSA)

Map | List

Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA)

Map | List

Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas (DHPSA)

Map | List

All Professional Shortage Areas (Mental, Primary Care and Dental Merged)

Map of Micropolitan and Metropolitan Statistical Areas | List

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Medically Underserved Areas

Medically Underserved Areas and Medically Underserved Populations have shortages of primary medical care, dental or mental health providers and may be geographic (a county or service area) or demographic (low income, Medicaid-eligible populations, cultural and/or linguistic access barriers to primary medical care services)

They are each assigned an Index of Medical Underservice (IMU) score, which is used to determine the eligibility of an area or population for MUA/MUP status.

Federal Programs Available to MUA/MUP:

• Community Health Center (CHC)
• Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs)
• Rural Health Clinics (RHCs)

Virginia Medically Underserved Areas

Virginia Medically Underserved Areas (VMUA)

Map

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