Health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) and
medically underserved areas (MUAs), established under the U.S. Public Health
Service Act, are federal designations of a geographic area (usually a county or
a collection of townships or census tracts) which meet the criteria as needing
additional primary health care services. Designation as a HPSA or MUA is based
on the availability of health professional resources within a rational service
area. The definition of a rational service area is usually based on a
thirty-minute travel time. Other factors considered in the designation process
are the availability of primary care resources in contiguous areas and the
presence of unusually high need, such as high infant mortality rate or high
poverty rate. HPSA designations usually apply to geographic areas, but may apply
to population groups and facilities. The Division of Shortage Designation,
Bureau of Primary Care, Health Resources and Services Administration, Department
of Health and Human Services is responsible for the designation process. The
Indiana State Department of Health, Office of Primary Care is responsible for
the submission of HPSA and MUA designation requests and updates to the Division
of Shortage Designation.
Federal opportunities available to Health
Professional Shortage Areas include: National Health Service Corps Scholarship
and Loan Repayment Programs, Rural Health Clinic Act, Medicare Incentive
Payments for Physician's services furnished in HPSAs, and Area Health Education
Center Program.
Federal opportunities available to Medically
Underserved Areas/Medically Underserved Populations include:
- Community Health Center (CHC) grants for the
planning, development, or operation of community health centers under section
330 of the Public Health Service Act;
- Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs)
Look alikes which meet the definition of community health center contained in
Section 330 of the Public Health Service Act, but are not funded under that
section, but are eligible for certification as FQHC and thus for cost-based
reimbursement of services to Medicaid-eligible, and;
- Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) serving rural
areas designated as MUAs are eligible for certification as RHCs by the Health
Care Financing Administration under the authority of the Rural Health Clinics
Services Act.
Click on the following links for more
information:
Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Areas 
Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Areas - MAP (pdf)
Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas
Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas - MAP (pdf)
Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas
Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas - MAP (pdf)
Medically Underserved Areas
Medically Underserved Areas - MAP (pdf)
HPSA/MUA Introduction 
HPSA/MUA Process
Community Involvement
National Health Service Corps
