AL · Healthcare shortage profile
Etowah County, AL
Peak severity leads this reading: Etowah County's highest active HPSA score is 25.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Population 103,436.
- Active HPSAs
- 4
- Population
- 103,436
- Peak shortage score
- 25.0
- MUA Index
- 51.0
Mid-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Etowah County holds a moderate federal shortage burden - 4 active HPSA designations, more than 44% of the 3,289 real US counties, with primary care the deepest gap.
- 4
- Active HPSA designations
- 1
- Dental shortages
- 25
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 56%
- US counties by volume
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Etowah County, AL on its own pages , computed from the retained designation mirror as of 2026-08-15. Each line carries its own denominator so it can be quoted as it stands.
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Peak HPSA score 25.0 clears HRSA's 17-point high-priority line.
Scores at or above 17 on the 0–25/26 scales open NHSC placement priority for the matching provider type; eligibility still follows the designated area, not the county boundary alone.
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Closing Etowah County's active designations would take about 4.9 additional clinician FTEs, with primary care the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 4.9 primary care. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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50% of Etowah County's 4 active designations are primary care.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 2 primary care, 1 mental health, 1 dental (denominator 4).
Etowah County's mid-pack ZIP footprint
15 Census ZCTAs intersect Etowah County, between the 9 and 15 ZIP cuts across published counties: neither a postage-stamp footprint nor a metro-scale lattice.
Largest land-share ZCTAs
7 additional ZCTAs intersect this county in the crosswalk (ordered by land share).
Source: Census ZCTA–county relationship file joined to this portal's county FIPS set. As of 2026-08-15.
Corpus placement
Active-designation volume placement
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Etowah County carries 4 active designations, above 44% of real US counties. Use the state peer line below before treating the national percentile as a local access verdict.
State peer position. Etowah County falls in the upper half of AL counties by active-designation volume, at rank 26 of 67. Ties share a rank.
Computed from current designated HPSA rows for every five-digit county FIPS. See the placement methodology.
Healthcare shortage designations from HRSA. FIPS: 01055. Population: 103,436.
Medically Underserved Area
Active HPSA scores
Current designated records only. Scores range 0–25 (primary/mental health), 0–26 (dental). Higher = greater need. What counts as a high score?
Highest-severity HPSA designations
All 4 active (designated) HPSAs in Etowah County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Quality OF Life Health Services, Inc. | dental | 25.0 |
| Quality OF Life Health Services, Inc. | primary_care | 20.0 |
| Quality OF Life Health Services, Inc. | mental_health | 19.0 |
| LI-Etowah County | primary_care | 13.0 |
Moderate-burden reading for Etowah County
Peak severity leads this reading: Etowah County's highest active HPSA score is 25.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Dental care carries Etowah County's deepest shortage reading, 25.0 on HRSA's 0–26 dental scale, past the 17-point line HRSA uses to open National Health Service Corps placement and enhanced Medicare reimbursement. Primary care reads 20.0 of 25; Mental health reads 19.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 51.0, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Etowah County sits in the middle of the national designation-volume distribution (above 44% of counties) with 4 active records. That is enough for a formal shortage footprint without landing in the heaviest US tier. Compare the three discipline counts (2/1/1) before assuming every care category is equally short.
Etowah County falls in the upper half of AL counties by active-designation volume, at rank 26 of 67. For moderate counties, the useful move is usually a state peer check plus the score cards above, not a national superlative claim.
Etowah County designations by care type
Active Health Professional Shortage Area designations in the county, by provider category (high-priority disciplines emphasized).
- Primary care
Primary care
2 designations
- Mental health
Mental health
1 designations
- Dental
Dental
1 designations
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse, Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA) + Medically Underserved Areas/Populations (MUA/P) HPSA primary-care, mental-health, and dental designations for Etowah County, AL · 2026 HRSA designation data updated quarterly; HPSA scores 0-25 (primary/mental) and 0-26 (dental); higher = greater shortage severity. Coverage tiers from U.S. Census ACS PUMS + KFF state tracker.
Acting on Etowah County's designations
Etowah County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Etowah County's 4 active designations make providers here eligible for National Health Service Corps loan repayment, estimate the award and service terms. NHSC estimator
- See how the county's primary care burden compares with the rest of AL before you draw conclusions from a single score. AL overview
- Check whether an area clears HRSA's 3,500:1 population-to-provider threshold with the provider-to-population ratio behind an HPSA score. HPSA score lookup
HPSA scores describe shortage severity within HRSA's designation criteria, not the availability of any individual provider. For a specific appointment, contact a provider or your insurer; use HRSA's current tools to verify a designation.
Nearby dental score peers
Closest U.S. counties on active dental HPSA score to Etowah County's 25.0. Open Cook County, IL or Riverside County, CA next.
Showing 3 of 2744 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
Counties near Etowah County's dental score of 25.0
One peer set for this severity-led county: nearest active dental HPSA score to 25.0 (severity lead on this page is “QUALITY OF LIFE HEALTH SERVICES, INC.”).
Cook County, IL
25.0 dental score · 5,275,541 pop.
Riverside County, CA
25.0 dental score · 2,418,185 pop.
Broward County, FL
25.0 dental score · 1,944,375 pop.
Bronx County, NY
25.0 dental score · 1,472,654 pop.
Salt Lake County, UT
25.0 dental score · 1,185,238 pop.
Fresno County, CA
25.0 dental score · 1,008,654 pop.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Etowah County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Etowah County carries an MUA designation (index 51.0; lower = greater measured need) in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
- Which record sets Etowah County's peak score of 25.0?
- "QUALITY OF LIFE HEALTH SERVICES, INC." leads the active set (score 25.0; dental; 181,110 people in the service area; designated 07/21/2003). Clearing 17 opens NHSC high-priority placement for the matching provider type on the designated geography. Discipline mix across 4 active rows: 2 primary care, 1 mental health, 1 dental.
- Which other active designations sit under Etowah County's severity reading?
- After "QUALITY OF LIFE HEALTH SERVICES, INC.", the next active names on this release are "QUALITY OF LIFE HEALTH SERVICES, INC.", "QUALITY OF LIFE HEALTH SERVICES, INC.", "QUALITY OF LIFE HEALTH SERVICES, INC." and "LI-Etowah County". Provider need (id-de-duped) totals ~4.9 FTE across disciplines that still carry a gap.
- Which federal pathways follow Etowah County's high-severity geography?
- Etowah County's 4 active designations can open NHSC placement, CHC grants, Medicare bonus and J-1 waivers, eligibility follows the designated area and provider type, not merely the county line around "QUALITY OF LIFE HEALTH SERVICES, INC.".
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 01055. This county’s designations come from BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_PC.csv (primary care) , BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_MH.csv (mental health) and BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_DH.csv (dental) — download the normalized export on our open data page. PlainHealthAccess is not affiliated with HRSA or any government agency.
HRSA Data Warehouse HPSA + MUA/P records for FIPS 01055 (Etowah County, AL), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 4; peak score 25.0; signature peak score 25.0. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.