Medically Underserved Area Designated · below priority line

VA · Healthcare shortage profile

Arlington County, VA

Home to 238,643 residents, with 3 active HRSA shortage designations.

Active HPSAs
3
Population
238,643
Peak shortage score
13.0
MUA Index
MUA
VA state overview → About this data

Light-burden verdict

According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Arlington County carries a comparatively light shortage burden - 3 active HPSA designations, more than 20% of the 3,289 real US counties, with primary care the deepest gap.

3
Active HPSA designations
1
Primary-care shortages
13
Peak severity score (of 26)
Top 80%
US counties by volume

Key findings

What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Arlington 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.

  1. 33.3% of Arlington County's 3 active designations are primary care.

    Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 1 primary care, 1 mental health, 1 dental (denominator 3).

  2. Closing Arlington County's active designations would take about 9.3 additional clinician FTEs, with primary care the largest gap.

    HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 5.4 primary care, 1.2 mental health, 2.7 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.

  3. Peak HPSA score 13.0 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, Arlington County carries 3 active designations, above 20% 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. Arlington County falls in the upper half of VA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 55 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: 51013. Population: 238,643.

Medically Underserved Area

MUA Designated

Active HPSA scores

Primary Care 13.0
Mental Health 13.0
Dental 9.0

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 3 active (designated) HPSAs in Arlington County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.

Name Type Score
LI - Fairfax/Alexandria/Arlington Junction primary_care 13.0
ME - Arlington County Mhca mental_health 13.0
LI - Fairfax/Alexandria/Arlington Junction dental 9.0

Light-burden reading for Arlington County

Arlington County's shortage runs equally deep in primary care and mental health: both scored 13.0 by HRSA, still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. Dental care reads 9.0 of 26. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, a separate HRSA designation from the HPSA records above.

Arlington County carries 3 active designations and sits below the national mid-pack (above 20% 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.

Arlington County falls in the upper half of VA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 55 of 133. Read the active scores and the deepest-care guide link below before collapsing this county into a "no shortage" story.

Clinician FTE gap by care type

HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Arlington County's active designations: a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.

Nationwide counties with similar HRSA profiles

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

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Arlington County a Medically Underserved Area?

Yes, Arlington County is designated as a Medically Underserved Area (MUA) by HRSA. The MUA Index for this county is not available. MUA designation qualifies the area for enhanced federal funding and provider incentive programs.

How many healthcare shortage areas does Arlington County have?

Arlington County, VA has 3 Health Professional Shortage Area designations: 1 in primary care, 1 in mental health, and 1 in dental care, according to HRSA data.

What does Arlington County's HPSA score of 13.0 mean?

13.0 in primary care and mental health falls under 17, so the shortage is formally designated but outside HRSA's high-priority tier.

Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 51013. 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.