The Maine Rural Health Research Center focuses on barriers to health access for rural residents and related topics, including insurance coverage, Medicaid, behavioral health, long term services & supports, and challenges faced by rural providers (rural health clinics & critical access hospitals) in delivering and sustaining services. For over 20 years, the Maine Rural Health Research Center’s research agenda has focused on some of the most intractable health access problems facing rural residents, especially those with mental health and substance abuse issues and those facing financial barriers due to lack of insurance and under-insurance. That body of research has helped reveal the effects of policy and health system organization and financing on rural health access. The Center is committed to enhancing policy making and improving the access, delivery and financing of rural health services by effectively linking its research to the policy development process through appropriate dissemination strategies.

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2018

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Rural Health Clinic Participation in the Merit-Based Incentive System and Other Quality Reporting Initiatives: Challenges and Opportunities, John A. Gale MS, Zachariah T. Croll MPH, and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Residential Settings and Healthcare Use of the Rural "Oldest-Old" Medicare Population, Nathan Paluso MPH; Zachariah T. Croll MPH; Deborah Thayer MBA; Jean A. Talbot PhD, MPH; and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Low-Income, Uninsured Mainers Face Substantial Challenges Getting Health Care, Erika C. Ziller PhD, Amanda Burgess MPPM, and Barbara Leonard MPH

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The Role of Rural Hospitals in Addressing Opioid and Other Substance Use Problems, John A. Gale MS

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Strategies to Combat Opioid Use in Rural Communities, John A. Gale MS

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An Interim Evaluation Report of the Innovative Projects Portfolio of the Flex Program (FMT Briefing Paper #37), Sara Kahn-Troster MPH; John A. Gale MS; Anush Yousefian Hansen MS,MA; and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

2017

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Time-Varying Effects of Parental Alcoholism on Depression., Sunita Thapa, Arielle S Selya, and Yvonne Jonk PhD

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Rural Long-Term Services and Supports: A Primer, Andrew F. Coburn PhD; Jennifer P. Lundblad PhD, MBA; Erin M. Mobley MPH; and RUPRI Health Panel

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State Flex Program Rural EMS Assessment Strategies (FMT Policy Brief #46), Karen B. Pearson MLIS, MA; John A. Gale MS; Sara Kahn-Troster MPH; and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Community Paramedicine Pilot Programs: Lessons from Maine, Karen B. Pearson MLIS, MA and George Shaler MPH

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Innovations in Rural Health System Development: Federally Qualified Health Center Initiatives, Sara Kahn-Troster MPH, Amanda Burgess MPPM, and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

Catastrophic Consequences: The Link Between Rural Opioid Use and HIV/AIDS, Jennifer Lenardson MHS and Mary Lindsey Smith PhD, MSW

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Knowledge of Health Insurance Concepts and the Affordable Care Act among Rural Residents, Erika C. Ziller PhD

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After Closure: Options for Pursuing a High Performance Rural Health System, Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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The Role of Public versus Private Health Insurance in Ensuring Health Care Access & Affordability for Low-Income Rural Children, Erika C. Ziller PhD, Jennifer D. Lenardson MHS, and Amanda Burgess MPPM

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Prevention of Drug Use and Treatment of Drug Use Disorders in Rural Settings, John A. Gale MS

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Rural Opioid Prevention and Treatment Strategies: The Experience in Four States [Policy Brief], John A. Gale MS; Anush Yousefian Hansen MS,MA; and Martha Elbaum Williamson MPA

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Rural Opioid Prevention and Treatment Strategies: The Experience in Four States [Working Paper], John A. Gale MS; Anush Hansen MS,MA; and Martha Elbaum Williamson MPA

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Mental Health Status and Access to Health Care Services for Adults in Maine, Erika C. Ziller PhD and Barbara Leonard MPH

2016

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Comparing the Community Benefit Spending of CAHs, Other Rural, and Urban Hospitals (FMT Policy Brief #45), John A. Gale MS, Zach T. Croll, Andrew F. Coburn PhD, and Jamar Croom MS

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Innovations in Rural Health System Development: Service Delivery Advances in Care Coordination, Emergency Care, and Telehealth, Amanda Burgess MPPM and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Innovations in Rural Health System Development: Maine's Behavioral Health Services, Amanda Burgess MPPM and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Innovations in Rural Health System Development: Moving Rural Health Systems to Value-based Payment, Sara Kahn-Troster MPH and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Innovations in Rural Health System Development: Recruiting and Retaining Maine's Health Care Workforce, Amanda Burgess MPPM and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Innovations in Rural Health System Development: Governance, Sara Kahn-Troster MPH and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Access to Health Care Services for Adults in Maine [Report], Erika C. Ziller PhD

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Health Insurance CO-OPs: Product Availability and Premiums in Rural Counties, Erika C. Ziller PhD, Zachariah T. Croll BA, and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Developing Program Performance Measures for Rural Emergency Medical Services, John A. Gale MS; Andrew F. Coburn PhD; Karen B. Pearson MLIS, MA; Zachariah T. Croll MPH; and George Shaler PhD

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Maine Rural Health Profiles: A Statewide View of Rural Health, Sara Kahn-Troster MPH, Amanda Burgess MPPM, Andrew F. Coburn PhD, Ryan Wallace MRP, Zachariah T. Croll BA, and Rachel M. Gallo MPH

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Community Impact and Benefit Activities of CAHs, Other Rural, and Urban Hospitals, 2014, Zach T. Croll MPH, Lauren Zoll MPH, John A. Gale MPH, and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Population Health Strategies of CAHs (FMT Briefing Paper #36), John A. Gale MS; Andrew F. Coburn PhD; Karen B. Pearson MLIS, MA; Zachariah T. Croll MPH; and George Shaler MPH

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Understanding the Business Case for Telemental Health in Rural Communities., David Lambert PhD; John A. Gale MS; David Hartley PhD, MHA; Zachariah T. Croll BA; and Anush Yousefian Hansen MS, MA

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Are Rural Older Adults Benefitting from Increased State Spending on Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services?, Andrew F. Coburn PhD, Eileen Griffin JD, Deborah Thayer MBA, Zachariah T. Croll MPH, and Erika C. Ziller PhD

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Health Information Exchange: A Strategy for Improving Access for Rural Veterans in the Maine Flex Rural Veterans Health Access, Karen B. Pearson MLIS, MA; Amanda Burgess MPPM; John A. Gale MS; Andrew F. Coburn PhD; and Anush Yousefian Hansen MS, MA

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Adverse Childhood Experiences in Rural and Urban Contexts, Jean A. Talbot PhD, Donald Szlosek MPH, and Erika C. Ziller PhD

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Pilot testing a Rural Health Clinic quality measurement reporting system, John A. Gale MS; Anush Yousefian Hansen MS,MA; David Hartley PhD, MHA; and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Rural Opioid Abuse: Prevalence and User Characteristics, Jennifer D. Lenardson MHS, John A. Gale MS, and Erika C. Ziller PhD

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Mental Health First Aid in Rural Communities: Appropriateness and Outcomes, Jean A. Talbot PhD, Donald Szlosek MPH, and Erika C. Ziller PhD

2015

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CAH-Relevant Measures for Health System Development & Population Health (Policy Brief #42), John A. Gale MS, Andrew F. Coburn PhD, and Zach T. Croll MPH

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Out-of-Pocket Spending among Rural Medicare Beneficiaries, Erika C. Ziller PhD, Jennifer D. Lenardson MHS, and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Maine EMS Community Paramedicine Pilot Program Evaluation, Karen B. Pearson MLIS, MA and George Shaler MPH

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Rural Adults Delay, Forego, and Strategize to Afford Their Pre-ACA Health Care, Erika C. Ziller PhD, Jennifer D. Lenardson MHS, and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Rural Disabled Medicare Beneficiaries Spend More out-of-Pocket Than Their Urban Counterparts, Erika C. Ziller PhD, Jennifer D. Lenardson MHS, and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Implications of Rural Residence and Single Mother Status for Maternal Smoking Behaviors, Jean A. Talbot PhD, Donald Szlosek MPH, and Erika C. Ziller PhD

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Built environments and active living in rural and remote areas: A review of the literature, Anush Yousefian Hansen MS, MA; M. Renée Umstattd Meyer; Jennifer D. Lenardson MHS; and David Hartley PhD, MHA

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Adoption and Use of Electronic Health Records by Rural Health Clinics: Results of a National Survey [Working Paper], John A. Gale MS; Zachariah T. Croll MPH; and David Hartley PhD, MHA

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Adoption and Use of Electronic Health Records by Rural Health Clinics: Results of a National Survey [Policy Brief], John A. Gale MS; Zachariah T. Croll MPH; and David Hartley PhD, MHA

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Promoting Active Living in Rural Communities, Anush Yousefian Hansen MS, MA and David Hartley PhD, MHA

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Charity Care and Uncompensated Care Activities of Tax-Exempt Critical Access Hospitals (FMT Policy Brief #38), John Gale MS, Jamar Croom MS, Zach T. Croll MPH, and Andrew F. Coburn PhD

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Charity Care and Uncompensated Care Activities of Tax-Exempt Critical Access Hospitals (FMT Briefing Paper #35), John A. Gale MS, Jamar Croom MS, Zach T. Croll MPH, and Andrew F. Coburn PhD