MD · Healthcare shortage profile
Allegany County, MD
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Allegany County's active designations would take about 19 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Population 68,106.
- Active HPSAs
- 7
- Population
- 68,106
- Peak shortage score
- 18.0
- MUA Index
- 56.1
Heavy-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Allegany County carries a heavier shortage burden than most US counties - 7 active HPSA designations, more than 70% of the 3,289 real US counties, with mental health the deepest gap.
- 7
- Active HPSA designations
- 2
- Primary-care shortages
- 18
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 30%
- US counties by volume
Dense ZCTA lattice over Allegany County
Allegany County intersects 16 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
4 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 Allegany 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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Peak HPSA score 18.0 clears HRSA's 17-point high-priority line.
Scores at or above 17 on the 0–25/26 scales open NHSC placement priority for the matching provider type; eligibility still follows the designated area, not the county boundary alone.
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Closing Allegany County's active designations would take about 19 additional clinician FTEs, with primary care the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 8.6 primary care, 4.2 mental health, 6.2 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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42.9% of Allegany County's 7 active designations are mental health.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 2 primary care, 3 mental health, 2 dental (denominator 7).
Corpus placement
Active-designation volume placement
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Allegany County carries 7 active designations, above 70% of real US counties. Use the state peer line below before treating the national percentile as a local access verdict.
State peer position. Allegany County falls in the upper quarter of MD counties by active-designation volume, at rank 5 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: 24001. Population: 68,106.
Medically Underserved Area
Peak severity 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 7 active (designated) HPSAs in Allegany County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| LI - Allegany County | primary_care | 18.0 |
| LI - Alleghany County | dental | 18.0 |
| HN - Allegany County | mental_health | 17.0 |
| FCI-Cumberland | primary_care | 12.0 |
| FCI-Cumberland | mental_health | 12.0 |
| Western Correctional Institute | mental_health | 12.0 |
| FCI-Cumberland | dental | 12.0 |
Heavy-burden reading for Allegany County
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Allegany County's active designations would take about 19 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Allegany County's shortage runs equally deep in primary care and dental care: both scored 18.0 by HRSA, past the 17-point line HRSA uses to open National Health Service Corps placement and enhanced Medicare reimbursement. Mental health reads 17.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 56.1, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Volume places Allegany County above 70% of real US counties (7 active designations: 2 primary care, 3 mental health, 2 dental). Peak severity on the current designated set is 18.0. The table on this page lists the highest-severity records first so a reader can see which named facilities, geographies, or population groups drive that burden without treating the county total as a personal appointment forecast.
Allegany County falls in the upper quarter of MD counties by active-designation volume, at rank 5 of 23. Heavy-burden counties are where NHSC placement, Community Health Center grant geography, and related federal instruments concentrate; eligibility still follows the designated area and provider type, not the county boundary alone.
Allegany County designations by care type
Active Health Professional Shortage Area designations in the county, by provider category (high-priority disciplines emphasized).
- Mental health
Mental health
3 designations
- Primary care
Primary care
2 designations
- Dental
Dental
2 designations
Heavy-volume FTE gap in Allegany County
Signature reading: HRSA providers_needed sums to about 19 FTE across Allegany County's active designations (once per HPSA id), a federal gap estimate, not practising headcount.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse, Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA) + Medically Underserved Areas/Populations (MUA/P) HPSA primary-care, mental-health, and dental designations for Allegany County, MD · 2026 HRSA designation data updated quarterly; HPSA scores 0-25 (primary/mental) and 0-26 (dental); higher = greater shortage severity. Coverage tiers from U.S. Census ACS PUMS + KFF state tracker.
Acting on a heavy-burden county
Allegany County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Allegany County's 7 active designations make providers here eligible for National Health Service Corps loan repayment, estimate the award and service terms. NHSC estimator
- See how the county's mental health burden compares with the rest of MD before you draw conclusions from a single score. MD overview
- Check whether an area clears HRSA's 3,500:1 population-to-provider threshold with the provider-to-population ratio behind an HPSA score. HPSA score lookup
HPSA scores describe shortage severity within HRSA's designation criteria, not the availability of any individual provider. For a specific appointment, contact a provider or your insurer; use HRSA's current tools to verify a designation.
Counties With a Similar Primary Care Shortage Score
Other U.S. counties whose active HRSA primary-care HPSA score is closest to Allegany County's 18.0. This compares the designation score only, not local appointment availability or care quality. Start with Rapides County, LA and Kent County, MI.
Showing 6 of 2932 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
Counties with a matching designation count to Allegany County's 7
One peer set for this FTE-led county: nearest active designation count to 7 - the inventory behind the ~19 FTE published need.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Allegany County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Allegany County carries an MUA designation (index 56.1; lower = greater measured need) 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 Allegany County?
- Id-de-duped providers_needed across active HPSAs totals ~19 FTE, with primary care the largest slice (8.6). "LI - Allegany County" is the highest-scored active row (score 18.0; primary care; 729 people in the service area; ~7.6 FTE still needed on the record; designated 10/15/2021). This is HRSA's published gap, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
- Which named designations drive Allegany County's FTE reading?
- Active names on this release include "LI - Allegany County", "LI - Alleghany County", "HN - Allegany County" and "FCI-Cumberland". Discipline counts: 2 primary care, 3 mental health, 2 dental across 7 designated rows.
- Do Allegany County's FTE gaps unlock federal programs?
- Yes where an ACTIVE designation exists, NHSC, CHC grants, Medicare bonus and J-1 waivers follow the designated geography and provider type. A published FTE gap without an active row does not, by itself, open those pathways.
- How does Allegany County's FTE burden compare inside MD?
- 7 active designations and ~19 FTE published need. Allegany County falls in the upper quarter of MD counties by active-designation volume, at rank 5 of 23. Score-nearest counties on this release include Rapides County, LA and Kent County, MI.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 24001. 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 24001 (Allegany County, MD), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 7; peak score 18.0; signature 19 FTE gap. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.