HRSA Counties Indexed
75
with HPSA / MUA coverage
Medically underserved areas & HPSA profile
Medically Underserved Areas in Arkansas
92 Medically Underserved Areas and 391 active HRSA Health Professional Shortage Area designations across Arkansas.
- MUAs
- 92
- Total HPSAs
- 391
- Primary care
- 150
- Mental health
- 90
- Dental
- 151
Upper-middle density verdict
Within HRSA's current state and territory corpus, Arkansas occupies the upper-middle density quarter. The Data Warehouse counts 391 active shortage designations across 75 counties; Jefferson County has the largest county count at 19; about 11.2% of residents live in a geographic shortage county.
- 391
- Active HPSA designations
- 150
- Primary-care shortages
- 92
- Medically underserved areas
- 11.2%
- Residents in a shortage county
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Arkansas 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.
-
Jefferson County holds 4.9% of Arkansas's 391 active designations (19 of 391).
74 of 75 counties in this profile carry at least one active record; the remainder are zero-active on this release.
-
38.6% of Arkansas's active designations are dental.
Discipline mix from state aggregates: 150 primary care, 90 mental health, 151 dental (denominator 391).
-
Closing Arkansas's active designations would take about 460 additional clinician FTEs, led by dental.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id across the state: 188 primary care, 52 mental health, 220 dental. Federal gap estimate, not a practising-clinician headcount.
Corpus placement
Where Arkansas sits among all 56 states and territories
Arkansas carries 391 active HPSA designations for a population of 3,011,524, which is 13.0 per 100,000 residents, ranking it 17 of 56 and above 70% of states and territories, against a median of 7.3.
16 of those are county-wide geographic designations; the remainder are facility-, population- or clinic-based, which is why the county map and the designation count answer different questions.
Designation density tracks rural geography as much as unmet need: AK records 134.7 designations per 100,000 residents and NJ 1.5, because a sparsely-settled state accumulates more separate designations to cover the same population. Designations also overlap, so this counts designations, not people. Counted as distinct HRSA designation IDs, the same unit as the totals above. Computed from the designation records and county populations behind this page; states without county population data are given no placement rather than an estimated one.
Snapshot comparison
Change since the previous HRSA snapshot
Between Jun 2, 2026 and Jul 25, 2026, the number of active stable HPSA IDs recorded for Arkansas changed from 351 to 391 (+40).
- IDs added
- 27
- IDs absent now
- 0
- Newly designated
- 17
- No longer designated
- 4
Among IDs present in both snapshots, scores rose for 9 and fell for 4; recorded providers needed rose for 13 and fell for 6. These are changes in published designation records, not evidence of cause, care quality, or patient outcomes. See the national comparison and limitations.
Medically Underserved Areas
92
Residents in Geographic Shortage Areas
336,712
% Residents in Geographic Shortage
11.2%
Discipline Mix
150 / 90 / 151 PC/MH/D
Primary care · Mental health · Dental
% Residents in Geographic Shortage-Designated Counties 11.2%
Arkansas Shortage Designations by Care Type
How Arkansas's 391 active HRSA designations split across the three provider categories. According to KFF's May 2026 tracker, Arkansas has adopted ACA Medicaid expansion. That policy context does not measure provider supply, appointment availability, or care quality.
Arkansas HPSA designations by type
Active Health Professional Shortage Area designations, by provider category.
- Dental
Dental
151 designations
- Primary care
Primary care
150 designations
- Mental health
Mental health
90 designations
Arkansas HPSA Counties by Care Type
County lists for the three HRSA shortage disciplines searchers ask for by name (dental, primary care, mental health). Counts are live designated-HPSA records in this release, not provider headcounts.
Dental HPSA counties in Arkansas
73 counties with at least one active dental designation ; led by Jefferson (7). Full list (designation count in parentheses): Jefferson (7) , Logan (5) , Jackson (4) , Sharp (4) , Chicot (3) , Clark (3) , Clay (3) , Cleburne (3) , Desha (3) , Fulton (3) , Hot Spring (3) , Johnson (3) , Lee (3) , Lincoln (3) , Mississippi (3) , Ouachita (3) , Poinsett (3) , Polk (3) , Scott (3) , Searcy (3) ; plus 53 more in the table below.
Primary-care HPSA counties in Arkansas
74 counties with at least one active primary-care designation ; led by Jefferson (7). Full list: Jefferson (7) , Logan (5) , Jackson (4) , Sharp (4) , Chicot (3) , Clark (3) , Clay (3) , Cleburne (3) , Desha (3) , Fulton (3) , Hot Spring (3) , Johnson (3) , Lee (3) , Lincoln (3) , Mississippi (3) , Ouachita (3) , Poinsett (3) , Polk (3) , Scott (3) , Searcy (3) ; plus 54 more in the table below.
Mental-health HPSA counties in Arkansas
67 counties with at least one active mental-health designation ; led by Jefferson (5). Full list: Jefferson (5) , Logan (5) , Jackson (4) , Sharp (4) , Chicot (3) , Clark (3) , Clay (3) , Cleburne (3) , Desha (3) , Fulton (3) , Hot Spring (3) , Lee (3) , Mississippi (3) , Ouachita (3) , Poinsett (3) , Polk (3) , Scott (3) , St. Francis (3) , Calhoun (2) , Craighead (2) ; plus 47 more in the table below.
All counties in Arkansas, by total shortage volume
The 40 counties with the most active HPSA designations, of 75 in Arkansas. Columns split primary care, mental health, and dental. On a narrow screen, this list keeps each county’s total and MUA status visible; the care-type split is available on wider screens.
| # | County | Designations | MUA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jefferson | 19 | MUA |
| 2 | Logan | 15 | MUA |
| 3 | Jackson | 12 | MUA |
| 4 | Sharp | 12 | MUA |
| 5 | Chicot | 9 | MUA |
| 6 | Clark | 9 | MUA |
| 7 | Clay | 9 | MUA |
| 8 | Cleburne | 9 | MUA |
| 9 | Desha | 9 | MUA |
| 10 | Fulton | 9 | MUA |
| 11 | Hot Spring | 9 | MUA |
| 12 | Lee | 9 | MUA |
| 13 | Mississippi | 9 | MUA |
| 14 | Ouachita | 9 | MUA |
| 15 | Poinsett | 9 | MUA |
| 16 | Polk | 9 | MUA |
| 17 | Scott | 9 | MUA |
| 18 | Johnson | 8 | MUA |
| 19 | Lincoln | 8 | MUA |
| 20 | Searcy | 8 | MUA |
| 21 | St. Francis | 8 | MUA |
| 22 | Washington | 8 | MUA |
| 23 | Calhoun | 6 | MUA |
| 24 | Craighead | 6 | MUA |
| 25 | Crawford | 6 | MUA |
| 26 | Crittenden | 6 | MUA |
| 27 | Dallas | 6 | MUA |
| 28 | Drew | 6 | MUA |
| 29 | Faulkner | 6 | MUA |
| 30 | Franklin | 6 | MUA |
| 31 | Independence | 6 | MUA |
| 32 | Izard | 6 | MUA |
| 33 | Lawrence | 6 | MUA |
| 34 | Union | 6 | MUA |
| 35 | White | 6 | MUA |
| 36 | Woodruff | 6 | MUA |
| 37 | Baxter | 5 | MUA |
| 38 | Cleveland | 5 | MUA |
| 39 | Grant | 5 | - |
| 40 | Hempstead | 5 | MUA |
Medically Underserved Areas in Arkansas
Showing 30 of 92 MUA designations (lowest MUA Index first, i.e. most underserved).
| Name | MUA Index |
|---|---|
| Lafayette County | 29.6 |
| Montgomery County | 30.1 |
| Prairie County | 30.8 |
| Woodruff County | 31.7 |
| Madison County | 33.6 |
| Crittenden County | 34.2 |
| Nevada County | 36.0 |
| Chicot County | 37.3 |
| Cross County | 39.4 |
| Cleveland County | 39.4 |
| Stone County | 39.5 |
| Searcy County | 39.7 |
| Perry County | 42.6 |
| Jefferson Service Area | 44.9 |
| Hempsted County | 45.1 |
| Newton County | 45.5 |
| Lonoke County | 45.9 |
| Monroe County | 46.0 |
| Baxter County | 46.3 |
| Jefferson Service Area | 46.5 |
| Independence County | 46.8 |
| Clay County | 47.4 |
| Carroll County | 47.5 |
| Franklin County | 48.5 |
| Logan County | 49.2 |
| Phillips County | 49.6 |
| Pulaski Service Area | 50.4 |
| Jefferson Service Area | 50.7 |
| Conway County | 50.7 |
| Kentucky Service Area | 50.8 |
Upper-middle density reading for Arkansas
Arkansas carries 391 active HPSA designations with 92 Medically Underserved Areas, enough for a formal shortage footprint without landing in the densest US tier. Compare the three discipline counts (150/90/151) before assuming every care category is equally short.
Geographic shortage counties cover about 11.2% of residents. That coverage signal routes federal recruitment dollars; it is not a service-denial verdict for any one household.
Learn More About Healthcare Shortages
Explore more Arkansas shortage data
Dig deeper into the federal shortage designations behind Arkansas's numbers.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many Medically Underserved Areas are in Arkansas? ▼
Arkansas has 92 Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs). About 336,712 residents (11.2% of the state) live in a county with a geographic HRSA shortage designation. MUA-designated areas qualify for enhanced federal funding and Community Health Center grants.
Which counties in Arkansas have dental HPSA designations? ▼
73 Arkansas counties carry at least one active dental Health Professional Shortage Area in the current HRSA release: Jefferson (7), Logan (5), Jackson (4), Sharp (4), Chicot (3), Clark (3), Clay (3), Cleburne (3), Desha (3), Fulton (3), Hot Spring (3), Johnson (3), Lee (3), Lincoln (3), Mississippi (3), Ouachita (3), Poinsett (3), Polk (3), Scott (3), Searcy (3); plus 53 more on the table below. Counts are designated dental HPSA records per county, not a dentist headcount.
Are there doctor shortages in Arkansas? ▼
Yes. Arkansas has 391 Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs), including 150 in primary care, 90 in mental health, and 151 in dental care. About 11.2% of Arkansas residents live in a county that HRSA has designated as a geographic (whole-community) shortage area; additional residents are covered by population-group and facility designations counted separately.
What are HPSAs? ▼
Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) are federal designations by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) identifying communities with insufficient healthcare providers. HPSAs are categorized into three types: primary care, mental health, and dental. In Arkansas, there are 391 designated HPSAs and 92 Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs).
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse Not affiliated with HRSA
Choose the next comparison
Use Arkansas's designation totals as a starting point, then move to the comparison that answers the next decision without treating a shortage designation as a personal care outcome.
- Compare Arkansas's primary-care shortage record with every other state before drawing conclusions from a raw total; population and geography affect designation counts. Compare states
- Jefferson County has the most active HPSA designations in this state profile. Open its county record to inspect the local primary-care, mental-health, and dental breakdown. Open county profile
- Use the national statistics reference for the source vintage, aggregate context, and methodology behind these state-level figures. Read national context
HRSA designations describe structural provider-shortage criteria and federal-program eligibility. They do not measure appointment availability, insurance coverage, care quality, or an individual patient’s access to care.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Verify with U.S. Census Bureau →
Every figure on PlainHealthAccess is rendered directly from HRSA source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page aggregates every county-level HPSA and MUA designation on record for Arkansas (AR) and ranks the state's per-capita designation density among all states and territories. Designations describe federal shortage criteria, not appointment availability or care quality for any person. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, review the public data changelog, or report a data issue for this page. Data current as of 2026.