IN · Healthcare shortage profile
Spencer County, IN
Peak severity leads this reading: Spencer County's highest active HPSA score is 16.0, still below HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Population 19,810.
- Active HPSAs
- 2
- Population
- 19,810
- Peak shortage score
- 16.0
- MUA Index
- 60.0
Light-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Spencer County carries a comparatively light shortage burden - 2 active HPSA designations, more than 10% of the 3,289 real US counties, with primary care the deepest gap.
- 2
- Active HPSA designations
- 1
- Mental-health shortages
- 16
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 90%
- US counties by volume
Dense ZCTA lattice over Spencer County
Spencer County intersects 16 Census ZCTAs, above the 15-ZIP dense-tercile cut. Shortage designations still attach at the county (or smaller HPSA) grain; the ZIP list is geography, not a second severity score.
Largest land-share ZCTAs in this county
4 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.
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Spencer County, IN 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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Closing Spencer County's active designations would take about 10 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 2.7 primary care, 7.3 mental health. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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50% of Spencer County's 2 active designations are primary care.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 1 primary care, 1 mental health, 0 dental (denominator 2).
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Peak HPSA score 16.0 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, Spencer County carries 2 active designations, above 10% 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. Spencer County falls in the lower half of IN counties by active-designation volume, at rank 61 of 92. 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: 18147. Population: 19,810.
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 2 active (designated) HPSAs in Spencer County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Mhca 24 - Spencer/Perry/Crawford/Dubois/Orange Counties | mental_health | 16.0 |
| Spencer County | primary_care | 11.0 |
Light-burden reading for Spencer County
Peak severity leads this reading: Spencer County's highest active HPSA score is 16.0, still below HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Spencer County's severest measured gap is in mental health, scored 16.0 of 25, still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. Primary care reads 11.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 60.0, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Spencer County carries 2 active designations and sits below the national mid-pack (above 10% of counties). A light footprint still matters: a single high-score dental or mental-health record can open program geography even when the county total looks small next to heavy peers.
Spencer County falls in the lower half of IN counties by active-designation volume, at rank 61 of 92. Read the active scores and the deepest-care guide link below before collapsing this county into a "no shortage" story.
Light-volume FTE gap for Spencer County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Spencer County's active designations: about 10 FTE, a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
Counties near Spencer County's mental score of 16.0
One peer set for this severity-led county: nearest active mental HPSA score to 16.0 (severity lead on this page is “MHCA 24 - Spencer/Perry/Crawford/Dubois/Orange Counties”).
Roanoke County, VA
16.0 mental score · 96,929 pop.
Kent County, MI
16.0 mental score · 657,974 pop.
Smith County, TX
16.0 mental score · 233,479 pop.
Iredell County, NC
16.0 mental score · 186,693 pop.
Houston County, GA
16.0 mental score · 163,633 pop.
Wichita County, TX
16.0 mental score · 129,350 pop.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Spencer County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Spencer County carries an MUA designation (index 60.0; 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 Spencer County's peak score of 16.0?
- "MHCA 24 - Spencer/Perry/Crawford/Dubois/Orange Counties" leads the active set (score 16.0; mental health; 109,766 people in the service area; ~7.3 FTE still needed on the record; designated 03/07/2022). Below 17 the shortage is formal but outside HRSA's high-priority NHSC tier. Discipline mix across 2 active rows: 1 primary care, 1 mental health, 0 dental.
- Which other active designations sit under Spencer County's severity reading?
- After "MHCA 24 - Spencer/Perry/Crawford/Dubois/Orange Counties", the next active names on this release are "MHCA 24 - Spencer/Perry/Crawford/Dubois/Orange Counties" and "Spencer County". Provider need (id-de-duped) totals ~10 FTE across disciplines that still carry a gap.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 18147. This county’s designations come from BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_PC.csv (primary care) and BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_MH.csv (mental health) — 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 18147 (Spencer County, IN), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 2; peak score 16.0; signature peak score 16.0. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.