08/08/17  Portland, Ore.

The Oregon Office of Rural Health developed the Areas of Unmet Health Care Need (AUHCN) report in 1998 in response to the Oregon Legislature’s requirement for the creation of medical underservice criteria for rural areas.

The report is published annually and is used:

• To grant exceptions for medical staff eligibility for Oregon’s income tax credit program,
• As part of a risk assessment formula for rural hospitals to receive cost-based Medicaid reimbursement (SB 607, passed in 1991; HB 3650, passed in 2011);
• As part of the determination of "medically underserved" geographic areas for the Oregon Governor’s Health Care Shortage Area Designation.

The report methodology was revised this year to better align with an integrated health care model. It now includes nine variables that measure access to physical, mental and oral primary health care. This report can be used by state partners to prioritize financial and technical assistance, and by community health care stakeholders to advocate for their unmet needs. The report is available here.

We welcome your feedback. If you have any questions or suggestions on this report, please contact Emerson Ong at onge@ohsu.edu.