NC · Healthcare shortage profile
Currituck County, NC
Peak severity leads this reading: Currituck County's highest active HPSA score is 16.0, still below HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Population 28,100.
- Active HPSAs
- 2
- Population
- 28,100
- Peak shortage score
- 16.0
- MUA Index
- 58.4
Light-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Currituck County carries a comparatively light shortage burden - 2 active HPSA designations, more than 10% of the 3,289 real US counties, with mental health the deepest gap.
- 2
- Active HPSA designations
- 1
- Dental shortages
- 16
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 90%
- US counties by volume
Based on HRSA primary/mental/dental shortage severity, Medically Underserved Area status, and estimated unmet provider need -- not patient outcomes, insurance access, facility quality, or wait times.
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Currituck County, NC 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.
-
Closing Currituck County's active designations would take about 5 additional clinician FTEs, with dental the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 1.5 mental health, 3.5 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
-
50% of Currituck County's 2 active designations are mental health.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 0 primary care, 1 mental health, 1 dental (denominator 2).
-
Peak HPSA score 16.0 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.
Currituck County's mid-pack ZIP footprint
15 Census ZCTAs intersect Currituck County, between the 9 and 15 ZIP cuts across published counties: neither a postage-stamp footprint nor a metro-scale lattice.
Largest land-share ZCTAs
7 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.
Corpus placement
Designated volume without a high-priority score
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Currituck 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. Currituck County falls in the lower half of NC counties by active-designation volume, at rank 98 of 100. 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: 37053. Population: 28,100.
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 2 active (designated) HPSAs in Currituck County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Currituck County | dental | 16.0 |
| Currituck County | mental_health | 14.0 |
Light-burden reading for Currituck County
Peak severity leads this reading: Currituck County's highest active HPSA score is 16.0, still below HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Dental care carries Currituck County's deepest shortage reading, 16.0 on HRSA's 0–26 dental scale, still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. Mental health reads 14.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 58.4, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Currituck 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.
Currituck County falls in the lower half of NC counties by active-designation volume, at rank 98 of 100. 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 Currituck County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Currituck County's active designations: about 5 FTE, a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
Counties near Currituck County's dental score of 16.0
One peer set for this severity-led county: nearest active dental HPSA score to 16.0 (severity lead on this page is “Currituck County”).
Orange County, TX
16.0 dental score · 84,808 pop.
Haywood County, NC
16.0 dental score · 62,089 pop.
Campbell County, VA
16.0 dental score · 55,696 pop.
Caldwell County, TX
16.0 dental score · 45,883 pop.
Vance County, NC
16.0 dental score · 42,578 pop.
Iredell County, NC
16.0 dental score · 186,693 pop.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Currituck County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Currituck County carries an MUA designation (index 58.4; lower = greater measured need) in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
- Which record sets Currituck County's peak score of 16.0?
- "Currituck County" leads the active set (score 16.0; dental; 12,000 people in the service area; ~3.5 FTE still needed on the record; designated 06/11/2020). Below 17 the shortage is formal but outside HRSA's high-priority NHSC tier. Discipline mix across 2 active rows: 0 primary care, 1 mental health, 1 dental.
- What provider types does Currituck County's severity cover?
- Active rows break down 0 primary care / 1 mental health / 1 dental. Closing published gaps would take about 5 additional clinician FTEs on this release.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 37053. This county’s designations come from 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 37053 (Currituck County, NC), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 2; peak score 16.0; signature peak score 16.0. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.