VA · Healthcare shortage profile
Albemarle County, VA
Home to 112,395 residents, with 1 active HRSA shortage designation.
- Active HPSAs
- 1
- Population
- 112,395
- Peak shortage score
- 16.0
- MUA Index
- 58.9
Light-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Albemarle 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
- 16
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 98%
- US counties by volume
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Albemarle County, VA 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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100% of Albemarle 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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Closing Albemarle County's active designations would take about 3.2 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 3.2 mental health. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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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, Albemarle 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. Albemarle County falls in the lower half of VA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 120 of 133. 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: 51003. Population: 112,395.
Medically Underserved Area
Active HPSA scores
Current designated records only · mental health only on this FIPS. 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 Albemarle County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| LI-Region 10 Mhca | mental_health | 16.0 |
Light-burden reading for Albemarle County
Albemarle 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. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 58.9, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Albemarle 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.
Albemarle County falls in the lower half of VA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 120 of 133. Read the active scores and the deepest-care guide link below before collapsing this county into a "no shortage" story.
Nationwide counties with similar HRSA profiles
Two peer sets for Albemarle County: active designation volume and primary-care HPSA score, ranked across the national county corpus.
Similar designation volume
Nearest active designation count (1 here).
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Albemarle County a Medically Underserved Area?
Yes, Albemarle County is designated as a Medically Underserved Area (MUA) by HRSA. The MUA Index for this county is 58.9. MUA designation qualifies the area for enhanced federal funding and provider incentive programs.
How many healthcare shortage areas does Albemarle County have?
Albemarle County, VA has 1 Health Professional Shortage Area designation: 0 in primary care, 1 in mental health, and 0 in dental care, according to HRSA data.
What does Albemarle County's HPSA score of 16.0 mean?
16.0 in mental health falls under 17, so the shortage is formally designated but outside HRSA's high-priority tier.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 51003. 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.