NE · Healthcare shortage profile
Seward County, NE
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Seward County's active designations would take about 12 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Population 17,609.
- Active HPSAs
- 1
- Population
- 17,609
- Peak shortage score
- 12.0
- MUA Index
- -
Light-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Seward County carries a comparatively light shortage burden - 1 active HPSA designation, more than 2% of the 3,289 real US counties, with mental health the deepest gap.
- 1
- Active HPSA designations
- 1
- Mental-health shortages
- 12
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 98%
- US counties by volume
Dense ZCTA lattice over Seward County
Seward County intersects 19 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
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.
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Seward County, NE 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 Seward County's active designations would take about 12 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 12 mental health. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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100% of Seward County's 1 active designations are mental health.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 0 primary care, 1 mental health, 0 dental (denominator 1).
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Peak HPSA score 12.0 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, Seward County carries 1 active designation, above 2% 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. Seward County falls in the lower half of NE counties by active-designation volume, at rank 82 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: 31159. Population: 17,609.
Active HPSA scores
Current designated records only · mental health only on this FIPS. No Medically Underserved Area designation covers Seward County in the current HRSA release, federal support here runs through the HPSA route alone. Scores range 0–25 (primary/mental health), 0–26 (dental). Higher = greater need. What counts as a high score?
Highest-severity HPSA designations
All 1 active (designated) HPSAs in Seward County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Mental Health Catchment Area 5 | mental_health | 12.0 |
Light-burden reading for Seward County
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Seward County's active designations would take about 12 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Seward County's severest measured gap is in mental health, scored 12.0 of 25, still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. No Medically Underserved Area designation covers Seward County, so federal support here runs through the HPSA route alone.
Seward County carries 1 active designation and sits below the national mid-pack (above 2% 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.
Seward County falls in the lower half of NE counties by active-designation volume, at rank 82 of 92. Read the active scores and the deepest-care guide link below before collapsing this county into a "no shortage" story.
Counties with a matching designation count to Seward County's 1
One peer set for this FTE-led county: nearest active designation count to 1 - the inventory behind the ~12 FTE published need.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Where is the largest clinician FTE gap inside Seward County?
- Id-de-duped providers_needed across active HPSAs totals ~12 FTE, with mental health the largest slice (12). "Mental Health Catchment Area 5" is the highest-scored active row (score 12.0; mental health; 324,750 people in the service area; ~12 FTE still needed on the record; designated 10/22/2021). This is HRSA's published gap, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
- Why is Seward County not listed as a Medically Underserved Area?
- Seward County has no MUA designation on this release. Federal shortage support here runs through the active HPSA record set alone.
- Which named designations drive Seward County's FTE reading?
- Active names on this release include "Mental Health Catchment Area 5". Discipline counts: 0 primary care, 1 mental health, 0 dental across 1 designated rows.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 31159. This county’s designations come from 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 31159 (Seward County, NE), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 1; peak score 12.0; signature 12 FTE gap. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.