Monday, June 23, 2025

The Dental Care Shortfall in the Great Plains Region

From March 31, 2025 data from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), more than 59.7 million Americans were living in settings designated as dental health professional shortage areas (HPSA).  A dental health HPSA is a facility, geographic area, or population group, where access to basic dental care is deemed substandard because there is a shortfall in the number of dentists serving the area relative to the size of the HPSA's population.  Per 3/31/25 HRSA data, dental care shortfall areas in the seven-state Great Plains region totaled more than 4 million residents.  The HRSA estimated that the region would need 675 more dentists to fully eliminate the dental care shortfall in the region's HPSAs.  From 3/31/25 HRSA data, here is a summary breakdown of the dental care shortfall in the Great Plains region of the U.S.:

The Dental Care Shortfall in the Great Plains Region

The Dental Care Shortfall in the Great Plains Region

State (1) HPSAs (2) Population (3) Shortfall
IA 140 483,912 98
KS 129 288,859 50
MN 194 991,583 130
MO 321 1,761,565 334
NE 112 134,922 12
ND 67 116,532 12
SD 90 240,488 39
Region 1,053 4,017,861 675
U.S. 7,054 59,718,174 10,143

(1) Designated Geographic, Population Group, and Facility HPSAs with a dental care shortfall
(2) Population of designated HPSAs
(3) Dental Care practitioners needed to remove HPSA Designation

Source:  Designated HPSA Quarterly Summary, 3/31/25 (HRSA)

Saturday, June 21, 2025

The Mental Health Care Shortfall in the Southeast

As designated by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), a mental health HPSA (health professional shortage area) is a population group, facility, or geographic unit where the availability of basic mental health care services is substandard. This designation is a reflection of there not being enough mental health care practitioners serving the HPSA community relative to its population size.  As of March 31, 2025, the HRSA reported that nearly 122.4 million Americans were living in designated mental health care shortfall areas.  That national total included more than 36.4 million residents of the twelve-state Southeast who were living in mental health care shortfall areas.  According to HRSA estimates, HPSAs in the Southeast would need 1,987 additional mental health care practitioners servicing these communities in order to eliminate the mental healthcare shortfall in the region.  A deeper look into 3/31/25 HRSA data reveals the following details about the mental health care shortfall in the Southeast:

The Mental Health Care Shortfall in the Southeast

The Mental Health Care Shortfall in the Southeast

State (1) HPSAs (2) Population (3) Shortfall
AL 64 2,943,245 128
AR 90 1,163,274 69
FL 219 7,830,810 452
GA 90 5,025,398 180
KY 179 2,414,709 131
LA 171 3,210,059 160
MS 84 2,132,264 90
NC 191 3,512,069 217
SC 73 2,081,830 99
TN 83 2,987,186 243
VA 99 2,385,548 129
WV 115 766,433 89
Region 1,458 36,452,825 1,987
U.S. 6,418 122,383,988 6,202

(1) HRSA-designated Geographic Units, Population Groups, and Facilities with a mental health care shortfall
(2) Population of designated HPSAs
(3) Mental Health Care practitioners needed to remove HPSA Designation

Source:  Designated HPSA Quarterly Summary, March 31, 2025 (HRSA)