The rural mortality penalty in U.S. hospital patients with COVID-19.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic brought greater focus to the rural mortality penalty in the U.S., which describes the greater mortality rate in rural compared to urban areas. Although it is widely thought that issues such as access to care, age structure of the population, and differences in behavior are likely drivers of the rural mortality penalty, few studies have attempted to tie delayed access to care in rural populations to healthcare outcomes quantitatively. Therefore, it is critical to try and understand these factors to enable more effective public health policy.

Methods

We performed a cross-sectional analysis of a population of patients with COVID-19 who were admitted to hospitals in the United States between 3/1/2020 and 2/26/2023 to better understand factors lea

SUBMITTER: Thompson JA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11323646 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature