FL · Healthcare shortage profile
Okaloosa County, FL
Peak severity leads this reading: Okaloosa County's highest active HPSA score is 21.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Population 211,668.
- Active HPSAs
- 5
- Population
- 211,668
- Peak shortage score
- 21.0
- MUA Index
- 55.7
Mid-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Okaloosa County holds a moderate federal shortage burden - 5 active HPSA designations, more than 47% of the 3,289 real US counties, with primary care the deepest gap.
- 5
- Active HPSA designations
- 2
- Mental-health shortages
- 21
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 53%
- 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 Okaloosa County, FL 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.
-
Peak HPSA score 21.0 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.
-
Closing Okaloosa County's active designations would take about 11 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 0.5 primary care, 9.4 mental health, 1.2 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
-
40% of Okaloosa County's 5 active designations are primary care.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 2 primary care, 2 mental health, 1 dental (denominator 5).
Okaloosa County's mid-pack ZIP footprint
14 Census ZCTAs intersect Okaloosa 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
6 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.
Okaloosa County vs. every real US county
Total active HPSA designations, including counties with none
5 Top 53% higher than 47% of 3,289 real US counties
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more real US counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source HRSA Data Warehouse, designated HPSAs · 2026
State peer position. Okaloosa County falls in the lower half of FL counties by active-designation volume, at rank 53 of 67. Ties share a rank; the comparison uses the same current designated records as the national chart.
Healthcare shortage designations from HRSA. FIPS: 12091. Population: 211,668.
Single high-priority discipline
Okaloosa County's only high-priority (≥17) footprint is mental health
Current HRSA Data Warehouse rows attribute 2 active mental health designations to Okaloosa County , with a peak score of 21.0. Other care categories may still be designated here, but none of them clear HRSA's high-priority score line of 17 on the current release, NHSC and related instruments concentrate on the mental health records.
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 5 active (designated) HPSAs in Okaloosa County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| CF-Okaloosa Correctional Institution/Work Camp | mental_health | 21.0 |
| Okaloosa County | mental_health | 15.0 |
| LI-Crestview/Holt | primary_care | 8.0 |
| CF-Okaloosa Correctional Institution/Work Camp | dental | 6.0 |
| CF-Okaloosa Correctional Institution/Work Camp | primary_care | 3.0 |
Moderate-burden reading for Okaloosa County
Peak severity leads this reading: Okaloosa County's highest active HPSA score is 21.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Okaloosa County's severest measured gap is in mental health, scored 21.0 of 25, past the 17-point line HRSA uses to open National Health Service Corps placement and enhanced Medicare reimbursement. Primary care reads 8.0 of 25; Dental care reads 6.0 of 26. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 55.7, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Okaloosa County sits in the middle of the national designation-volume distribution (above 47% of counties) with 5 active records. That is enough for a formal shortage footprint without landing in the heaviest US tier. Compare the three discipline counts (2/2/1) before assuming every care category is equally short.
Okaloosa County falls in the lower half of FL counties by active-designation volume, at rank 53 of 67. For moderate counties, the useful move is usually a state peer check plus the score cards above, not a national superlative claim.
Mid-pack clinician FTE gap for Okaloosa County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Okaloosa County's active designations: about 11 FTE, a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
Acting on Okaloosa County's high-priority mental health
Okaloosa County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Okaloosa County's high-priority mental health designations are where NHSC placement geography concentrates, estimate the award and service terms. NHSC estimator
- See how the county's mental health burden compares with the rest of FL before drawing conclusions from a single score. FL overview
- Check the provider-to-population ratio behind an HPSA score against HRSA's designation thresholds. 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.
Nearby mental-health score peers
Closest U.S. counties on active mental-health HPSA score to Okaloosa County's 21.0. Open Pinellas County, FL or Ocean County, NJ next.
Showing 3 of 3081 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Okaloosa County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Okaloosa County carries an MUA designation (index 55.7; 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 Okaloosa County's peak score of 21.0?
- "CF-Okaloosa Correctional Institution/Work Camp" leads the active set (score 21.0; mental health; 2,649 people in the service area; ~1.3 FTE still needed on the record; designated 03/17/1999). Clearing 17 opens NHSC high-priority placement for the matching provider type on the designated geography. Discipline mix across 5 active rows: 2 primary care, 2 mental health, 1 dental.
- Which other active designations sit under Okaloosa County's severity reading?
- After "CF-Okaloosa Correctional Institution/Work Camp", the next active names on this release are "CF-Okaloosa Correctional Institution/Work Camp", "Okaloosa County" and "LI-Crestview/Holt". Provider need (id-de-duped) totals ~11 FTE across disciplines that still carry a gap.
- Which federal pathways follow Okaloosa County's high-severity geography?
- Okaloosa County's 5 active designations can open NHSC placement, CHC grants, Medicare bonus and J-1 waivers, eligibility follows the designated area and provider type, not merely the county line around "CF-Okaloosa Correctional Institution/Work Camp".
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 12091. 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 12091 (Okaloosa County, FL), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 5; peak score 21.0; signature peak score 21.0. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.