KY · Healthcare shortage profile
Bullitt County, KY
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Bullitt County's active designations would take about 22 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Population 82,217.
- Active HPSAs
- 3
- Population
- 82,217
- Peak shortage score
- 18.0
- MUA Index
- 55.5
Light-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Bullitt 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
- Mental-health shortages
- 18
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 80%
- 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 Bullitt County, KY 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 Bullitt County's active designations would take about 22 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 1.4 primary care, 19 mental health, 1.4 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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33.3% of Bullitt 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).
Bullitt County's mid-pack ZIP footprint
11 Census ZCTAs intersect Bullitt 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
3 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.
Bullitt County vs. every real US county
Total active HPSA designations, including counties with none
3 Top 80% higher than 20% 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. Bullitt County falls in the lower half of KY counties by active-designation volume, at rank 68 of 120. Ties share a rank; the comparison uses the same current designated records as the national chart.
Healthcare shortage designations from HRSA. FIPS: 21029. Population: 82,217.
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 Bullitt County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| LI-Centerstone Mhca | mental_health | 18.0 |
| LI-Bullitt County 2 Northwest | primary_care | 17.0 |
| LI-Bullitt County 2 Northwest | dental | 17.0 |
Light-burden reading for Bullitt County
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Bullitt County's active designations would take about 22 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Bullitt County's severest measured gap is in mental health, scored 18.0 of 25, past the 17-point line HRSA uses to open National Health Service Corps placement and enhanced Medicare reimbursement. Primary care reads 17.0 of 25; Dental care reads 17.0 of 26. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 55.5, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Bullitt 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.
Bullitt County falls in the lower half of KY counties by active-designation volume, at rank 68 of 120. 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 Bullitt County
Signature reading: HRSA providers_needed sums to about 22 FTE across Bullitt 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 Bullitt County, KY · 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 Bullitt County's designations
Bullitt County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Bullitt County's 3 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 primary care burden compares with the rest of KY before you draw conclusions from a single score. KY 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 matching designation count to Bullitt County's 3
One peer set for this FTE-led county: nearest active designation count to 3 - the inventory behind the ~22 FTE published need.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Bullitt County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Bullitt County carries an MUA designation (index 55.5; 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 Bullitt County?
- Id-de-duped providers_needed across active HPSAs totals ~22 FTE, with mental health the largest slice (19). "LI-Centerstone MHCA" is the highest-scored active row (score 18.0; mental health; 3,600 people in the service area; ~19 FTE still needed on the record; designated 09/07/2024). This is HRSA's published gap, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
- Which named designations drive Bullitt County's FTE reading?
- Active names on this release include "LI-Centerstone MHCA" and "LI-Bullitt County 2 Northwest". Discipline counts: 1 primary care, 1 mental health, 1 dental across 3 designated rows.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 21029. 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 21029 (Bullitt County, KY), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 3; peak score 18.0; signature 22 FTE gap. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.