Medically Underserved Area Designated · below priority line

AR · Healthcare shortage profile

Benton County, AR

Home to 284,333 residents, with 4 active HRSA shortage designations.

Active HPSAs
4
Population
284,333
Peak shortage score
15.0
MUA Index
56.8
AR state overview → About this data

Mid-burden verdict

According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Benton County holds a moderate federal shortage burden - 4 active HPSA designations, more than 44% of the 3,289 real US counties, with dental the deepest gap.

4
Active HPSA designations
2
Dental shortages
15
Peak severity score (of 26)
Top 56%
US counties by volume

Key findings

What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Benton County, AR 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.

  1. 50% of Benton County's 4 active designations are dental.

    Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 1 primary care, 1 mental health, 2 dental (denominator 4).

  2. Closing Benton County's active designations would take about 2.4 additional clinician FTEs, with dental the largest gap.

    HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 2.4 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.

  3. Peak HPSA score 15.0 sits below HRSA's 17-point high-priority line.

    Below-17 designations still count as shortages for program geography, but they do not clear the high-priority NHSC placement threshold on this release.

Corpus placement

Designated volume without a high-priority score

According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Benton County carries 4 active designations, above 44% of real US counties. None of those scores clear HRSA's high-priority line of 17 on this release, so the page leads with severity reading rather than a national distribution chart.

State peer position. Benton County falls in the lower half of AR counties by active-designation volume, at rank 48 of 75. 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: 05007. Population: 284,333.

Below high-priority line

Benton County is designated, but no active score clears 17

4 active designations sit on this FIPS (1 primary care, 1 mental health, 2 dental), and the peak severity is 15.0. That is a formal shortage footprint without HRSA's high-priority (≥17) tier, so NHSC placement geography is usually weaker here than on counties whose lead score clears the line.

Medically Underserved Area

MUA Designated
MUA Index: 56.8

Active HPSA scores

Primary Care 14.0
Mental Health 13.0
Dental 15.0

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 Benton County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.

Name Type Score
Amc AR Rhc Garfield dental 15.0
LI Benton County dental 15.0
Amc AR Rhc Garfield primary_care 14.0
Amc AR Rhc Garfield mental_health 13.0

Moderate-burden reading for Benton County

Dental care carries Benton County's deepest shortage reading, 15.0 on HRSA's 0–26 dental scale, still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. Primary care reads 14.0 of 25; Mental health reads 13.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 56.8, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.

Benton 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 (1/1/2) before assuming every care category is equally short.

Benton County falls in the lower half of AR counties by active-designation volume, at rank 48 of 75. For moderate counties, the useful move is usually a state peer check plus the score cards above, not a national superlative claim.

Nationwide counties with similar HRSA profiles

Two peer sets for Benton County: active designation volume and primary-care HPSA score, ranked across the national county corpus.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Benton County a Medically Underserved Area?

Yes, Benton County is designated as a Medically Underserved Area (MUA) by HRSA. The MUA Index for this county is 56.8. MUA designation qualifies the area for enhanced federal funding and provider incentive programs.

How many healthcare shortage areas does Benton County have?

Benton County, AR has 4 Health Professional Shortage Area designations: 1 in primary care, 1 in mental health, and 2 in dental care, according to HRSA data.

What does Benton County's HPSA score of 15.0 mean?

15.0 in dental care falls under 17, so the shortage is formally designated but outside HRSA's high-priority tier.

What healthcare providers are needed in Benton County?

Based on HRSA shortage designations, Benton County needs additional providers in primary care (family physicians, internists, pediatricians), mental health (psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical social workers), and dental care (dentists, dental hygienists). The National Health Service Corps offers loan repayment and scholarship programs for providers who serve in designated shortage areas.

Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 05007. 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.