Health Care Access Grows Difficult in Shrinking Rural Communities

The lack of health care providers in rural Alabama is stark, with most of Alabama’s rural counties having significantly more people per primary care physician than urban counties, reports the Alabama Reflector. The average across the state is 1,520 people per one physician, while the most populous Jefferson County has 875 primary care physicians to every resident. As rural Alabama continues a decades-long population collapse, residents who remain – many of whom are older – face increasing barriers to health care, a trend seen around the nation.