Rural health care: innovations in policy and practice

All too often discussions of rural health policy concentrate almost exclusively on the challenges in rural areas: high rates of uninsurance, obesity, smoking, and alcohol use; a shortage of medical staff and facilities; economic decline; rapidly changing demographics as the population ages and new immigrants arrive; and physical and social isolation due to geography, population loss, and weather. But while it is true that rural America has not been immune to the effects of major economic and societal trends, rural areas' responses to these challenges demonstrate that they are often ideal incubators for innovative policies and practices.