MT · Healthcare shortage profile
Golden Valley County, MT
MUA standing opens this profile: Golden Valley County sits inside a Medically Underserved Area indexed at 59.6 (lower index = greater measured need). Population 823.
- Active HPSAs
- 2
- Population
- 823
- Peak shortage score
- 8.0
- MUA Index
- 59.6
Light-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Golden Valley 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
- Primary-care shortages
- 8
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 90%
- US counties by volume
Few Census ZCTAs touch Golden Valley County
The Census ZCTA-county crosswalk lists only 3 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas intersecting Golden Valley County, a sparse footprint relative to most US counties in this mirror (at or below the 9-ZIP tercile cut).
Intersecting ZCTA
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 Golden Valley County, MT 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 Golden Valley County's active designations would take about 0.4 additional clinician FTEs, with primary care the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 0.2 primary care, 0.2 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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50% of Golden Valley County's 2 active designations are primary care.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 1 primary care, 0 mental health, 1 dental (denominator 2).
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Peak HPSA score 8.0 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, Golden Valley 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. Golden Valley County falls in the lower half of MT counties by active-designation volume, at rank 39 of 56. 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: 30037. Population: 823.
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 Golden Valley County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Golden Valley County | primary_care | 8.0 |
| Golden Valley County | dental | 8.0 |
Light-burden reading for Golden Valley County
MUA standing opens this profile: Golden Valley County sits inside a Medically Underserved Area indexed at 59.6 (lower index = greater measured need). Golden Valley County's shortage runs equally deep in primary care and dental care: both scored 8.0 by HRSA, still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 59.6, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Golden Valley 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.
Golden Valley County falls in the lower half of MT counties by active-designation volume, at rank 39 of 56. 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 Golden Valley County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Golden Valley County's active designations: about 0.4 FTE, a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
Score neighbours for Golden Valley County's MUA-led profile
One peer set beside the MUA standing: nearest primary-care HPSA score (8.0 here).
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Golden Valley County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Golden Valley County carries an MUA designation (index 59.6; lower = greater measured need) in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
- How do Golden Valley County's HPSA rows sit beside the MUA?
- 2 active HPSA designations (1 primary care / 0 mental health / 1 dental); highest-scored active name is "Golden Valley County" (score 8.0; primary care; 840 people in the service area; ~0.2 FTE still needed on the record; designated 10/05/1978). MUA and HPSA are separate tracks, one does not substitute for the other.
- What does the 8.0 HPSA score mean next to the MUA?
- 8.0 sits below the 17-point high-priority HPSA line. MUA index 59.6 remains a separate need measure.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 30037. This county’s designations come from BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_PC.csv (primary care) 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 30037 (Golden Valley County, MT), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 2; peak score 8.0; signature MUA index 59.6. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.