Step 2: Secure Designations
Medically Underserved Areas/Populations
As a requirement of the program, community health centers (CHCs) must be located in and/or serve a federally designated Medically Underserved Area or Population (MUA/MUP). The HRSA Shortage Designation Branch makes the determination if a service area or population qualifies for the MUA or MUP designation based on a number of criteria including:
- poverty rates
- percent of the population aged 65 and older
- infant mortality rates
- physicians per 1,000 population
These criteria are subject to change.
An MUA may be a whole county or a contiguous group of counties, civil divisions, or urban census tracts in which residents have a shortage of personal health services.
An MUP may include groups of persons who face economic, cultural, linguistic, or other barriers to health care.
A database is available to determine if your area is currently MUA/MUP designated at
http://muafind.hrsa.gov/. If the interested community or service area is not currently designated, CHAD and the Primary Care Offices (North Dakota Primary Care Office - Terri Lang, shortage designation analyst; South Dakota Department of Health, Office of Rural Health) will assist in applying for the designation.
Health Professional Shortage Areas
While not required for health center funding, the Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) designation increases the competitiveness of a CHC grant application. The HRSA Shortage Designation Branch makes the determination if a service area qualifies for the HPSA designation by having a shortage of primary medical care, dental, or mental health providers.
HPSA designations may be geographic (a county or service area), demographic (low-income population), or institutional (a comprehensive health center, federally qualified health center, or other public facility).
A database is available to determine if your area is currently HPSA designated at
http://hpsafind.hrsa.gov/. If the interested community or service area is not currently designated, CHAD and the Primary Care Offices (North Dakota Primary Care Office - Terri Lang, shortage designation analyst; South Dakota Department of Health, Office of Rural Health) will assist in applying for the designation.
