120 Kentucky counties have at least one federal shortage designation for primary care, mental health or dental care. Look up a hospital to see whether its area has a shortage.
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Primary care shortage
112 counties
93% of Kentucky's 120 counties, against 88% nationally. 36 are designated as a whole county. 95 Kentucky hospitals are in these counties.
Mental health shortage
118 counties
98% of Kentucky's counties, against 93% nationally. 116 counties have a dental shortage designation.
Kentucky's highest-need counties for primary care
Counties with the highest primary care shortage score (0 to 25; higher means greater need).
MagoffinPart of county · 1 designationScore 22Mental health score 18
PikePart of county · 1 designationScore 21Mental health score 18
FultonWhole county · 1 designationScore 21Mental health score 15
JeffersonPart of county · 3 designationsScore 20Mental health score 18
WhitleyPart of county · 2 designationsScore 20Mental health score 13
HendersonPart of county · 1 designationScore 20Mental health score 18
Every Kentucky county with a shortage designation
Click a column to sort, or filter by county name. "Whole county" means the entire county is designated; "Part" means one or more areas within it (such as census tracts) or a population group (such as low-income residents) is designated. The number is the highest shortage score in the county.
No Kentucky county with a shortage designation matches that name.
Only counties with at least one active area-based designation (geographic or population) are listed; Kentucky has 120 counties in all. Scores run from 0 to 25 for primary care and mental health and 0 to 26 for dental care; higher means greater need. Bars show each score against the maximum. Source: Health Resources and Services Administration (data.hrsa.gov).
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Questions about shortage areas in Kentucky
Which Kentucky counties are primary care shortage areas?
112 Kentucky counties have all or part of the county designated as short of primary care providers (93% of 120). 36 are designated as a whole county: Allen, Boyle, Breathitt, Breckinridge, Caldwell, Carlisle, Casey, Clay, Elliott, Fulton, Graves, Hancock, Hart, Hickman, Jackson, Knott, Knox, Lee, Lincoln, McCreary and more. In the other 76, part of the county or a population group (such as low-income residents) is designated.
Which Kentucky county has the greatest need for primary care?
Magoffin has the highest primary care shortage score in Kentucky: 22 on a scale of 0 to 25, where higher means greater need. Next highest: Pike (21), Fulton (21), Jefferson (20), Whitley (20).
Is there a mental health care shortage in Kentucky?
118 Kentucky counties have a mental health shortage designation (98% of counties, against 93% nationally), 77 of them for the whole county. The highest mental health score is in Bracken (21 of 25). 116 counties have a dental shortage designation.
How does Kentucky compare with the rest of the U.S.?
93% of Kentucky's counties have a primary care shortage designation, higher than the national figure of 88% (2,759 of 3,143 counties). Many designations cover only part of a county or a population group, so a county being listed doesn't mean every resident lacks care.
What do the shortage scores mean?
HRSA scores each shortage area on how severe the need is, using things like the ratio of people to providers, poverty and travel time to care. Scores run from 0 to 25 for primary care and mental health, and from 0 to 26 for dental care. Higher scores mean greater need, and the highest-scoring areas get priority for National Health Service Corps clinicians.
HRSA designates Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) where there are too few providers for the population: for primary care, generally fewer than one doctor for every 3,500 people (or 3,000 in high-need areas). Designations unlock federal programs such as National Health Service Corps clinicians and Medicare bonus payments. About the data.
