0 Designated · below priority line

VA · Healthcare shortage profile

Stafford County, VA

Home to 156,927 residents, with 2 active HRSA shortage designations.

Active HPSAs
2
Population
156,927
Peak shortage score
15.0
MUA Index
-
VA state overview → About this data

Light-burden verdict

According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Stafford 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
15
Peak severity score (of 26)
Top 90%
US counties by volume

Key findings

What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Stafford 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. 50% of Stafford 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).

  2. Closing Stafford County's active designations would take about 27 additional clinician FTEs, with primary care the largest gap.

    HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 24 primary care, 3.1 mental health. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.

  3. Peak HPSA score 15.0 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, Stafford 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. Stafford County falls in the lower half of VA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 102 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: 51179. Population: 156,927.

Active HPSA scores

Primary Care 12.0
Mental Health 15.0

Current designated records only. No Medically Underserved Area designation covers Stafford 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 2 active (designated) HPSAs in Stafford County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.

Name Type Score
LI - Rappahannock Area Mhca mental_health 15.0
Stafford County primary_care 12.0

Light-burden reading for Stafford County

Stafford County's severest measured gap is in mental health, scored 15.0 of 25, still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. Primary care reads 12.0 of 25. No Medically Underserved Area designation covers Stafford County, so federal support here runs through the HPSA route alone.

Stafford 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.

Stafford County falls in the lower half of VA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 102 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 Stafford County's active designations: a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.

Nationwide counties with similar HRSA profiles

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

Frequently Asked Questions

How many healthcare shortage areas does Stafford County have?

Stafford County, VA has 2 Health Professional Shortage Area designations: 1 in primary care, 1 in mental health, and 0 in dental care, according to HRSA data.

Is Stafford County a Medically Underserved Area?

Stafford County does not currently have a Medically Underserved Area (MUA) designation from HRSA. However, the county may still have individual HPSA designations for specific provider types.

What does Stafford County's HPSA score of 15.0 mean?

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

Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 51179. 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.