Who Will Care for Rural Older Adults? Measuring the Direct Care Workforce in Rural Areas
BriefExpanding Access & Cultural Competence
November 1, 2022
This policy brief describes a research study that used the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data to look at differences in direct care workforce numbers in rural versus urban areas. The study finds that there needs to be more policies focusing on incentivizing and building better infrastructure around home and community based services and long-term services and supports in rural areas.
Rural areas have fewer home health aides and nursing assistants on average than urban areas.
There is regional variation in the distribution of home health aides to older adults across the US, with the biggest rural/urban disparities are in the West South Central region of the country.
It is necessary for states to provide additional funding and resources for home and community based services and long term care in rural areas.
