MD · Healthcare shortage profile
Harford County, MD
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Harford County's active designations would take about 17 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Population 260,924.
- Active HPSAs
- 3
- Population
- 260,924
- Peak shortage score
- 14.0
- MUA Index
- MUA
Light-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Harford 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
- 14
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 80%
- US counties by volume
Dense ZCTA lattice over Harford County
Harford County intersects 24 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
12 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 Harford County, MD 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 Harford County's active designations would take about 17 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 5.4 primary care, 8.3 mental health, 3.2 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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33.3% of Harford 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).
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Peak HPSA score 14.0 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, Harford 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. Harford County falls in the lower half of MD counties by active-designation volume, at rank 13 of 23. 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: 24025. Population: 260,924.
Medically Underserved Area
Active HPSA scores
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 Harford County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Edgewood Service Area | primary_care | 14.0 |
| Harford County | mental_health | 12.0 |
| Harford County | dental | 6.0 |
Light-burden reading for Harford County
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Harford County's active designations would take about 17 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Primary care is where Harford County is stretched thinnest: HRSA scores it 14.0 of 25, the county's highest severity reading and still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. Mental health reads 12.0 of 25; Dental care reads 6.0 of 26. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, a separate HRSA designation from the HPSA records above.
Harford 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.
Harford County falls in the lower half of MD counties by active-designation volume, at rank 13 of 23. Read the active scores and the deepest-care guide link below before collapsing this county into a "no shortage" story.
Light-volume FTE gap for Harford County
Signature reading: HRSA providers_needed sums to about 17 FTE across Harford County's active designations (once per HPSA id), a federal gap estimate, not practising headcount.
Counties with a matching designation count to Harford County's 3
One peer set for this FTE-led county: nearest active designation count to 3 - the inventory behind the ~17 FTE published need.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Harford County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Harford County carries an MUA designation in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
- Where is the largest clinician FTE gap inside Harford County?
- Id-de-duped providers_needed across active HPSAs totals ~17 FTE, with mental health the largest slice (8.3). "Edgewood Service Area" is the highest-scored active row (score 14.0; primary care; 3,500 people in the service area; ~5.4 FTE still needed on the record; designated 04/22/2026). This is HRSA's published gap, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
- Which named designations drive Harford County's FTE reading?
- Active names on this release include "Edgewood Service Area", "Harford County" and "Harford County". Discipline counts: 1 primary care, 1 mental health, 1 dental across 3 designated rows.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 24025. 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.
HRSA Data Warehouse HPSA + MUA/P records for FIPS 24025 (Harford County, MD), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 3; peak score 14.0; signature 17 FTE gap. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.