A vast majority of Americans, both Democrats and Republicans, consider access to healthcare in rural communities an important issue, according to poll results released by the Bipartisan Policy Center and the American Heart Association. Additionally, three in five voters think it is so important, they would vote for a candidate in the 2020 election who prioritized rural health in the campaign.
The survey results were discussed during a recent event that launched BPC’s new Rural Health Task Force, co-chaired by former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and former Sen. Olympia Snowe. According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, the task force will produce policy recommendations to help improve the health and healthcare of the 60 million Americans living in rural communities. The survey, conducted by Morning Consult, polled nearly 2,000 registered voters online, including an additional 200 interviews with rural adults in each of the following states that will play an important role in the 2020 election: Iowa, North Carolina, and Texas.
Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show those living in rural areas are at a greater risk of dying from heart disease, cancer, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory disease. These communities also face alarming rates of hospital closures, healthcare worker shortages, and geographic challenges to getting timely care compared to those living in urban areas.
Among the findings:
· Ninety-two percent of Democratic voters and 93 percent of Republican voters agree that access to health care in rural communities is important; and three in five voters say they would be more likely to vote for a candidate in the 2020 election who prioritized access to health care in rural America.
· More than half of rural voters (54 percent) say access to medical specialists, such as cardiologists or oncologists, is a problem in their local community compared to 33 percent of voters in non-rural areas, and more than one-quarter (27 percent), say it is difficult to access behavioral health professionals, compared to 16 percent of non-rural voters.
· Forty-seven percent of rural voters agree quality health care is a challenge in their community compared to 34 percent of non-rural voters.
· Rural voters are more likely than urban and suburban voters to agree that availability of appointments (56 vs. 50 percent) and the distance to receive care (50 vs. 37 percent) are barriers.
· One in five rural voters in Texas say it is difficult to access hospitals, urgent care facilities, primary care physicians, and medical specialists in their local community. Since 2010, 17 hospitals have closed in Texas.
· One in three rural adults in North Carolina and 46 percent in Iowa agree that access to medical specialists and quality health care are problems in their communities.
· Rural adults in Iowa, North Carolina, and Texas felt most comfortable using information technologies to reach their doctor or to receive medical care remotely, and half of rural adults in Texas said they are likely to use a “mobile app” if it were available to them.
