KY · Healthcare shortage profile
Bath County, KY
Peak severity leads this reading: Bath County's highest active HPSA score is 19.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Population 12,750.
- Active HPSAs
- 6
- Population
- 12,750
- Peak shortage score
- 19.0
- MUA Index
- 58.0
Mid-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Bath County holds a moderate federal shortage burden - 6 active HPSA designations, more than 54% of the 3,289 real US counties, with primary care the deepest gap.
- 6
- Active HPSA designations
- 2
- Primary-care shortages
- 19
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 46%
- US counties by volume
Few Census ZCTAs touch Bath County
The Census ZCTA-county crosswalk lists only 8 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas intersecting Bath County, a sparse footprint relative to most US counties in this mirror (at or below the 9-ZIP tercile cut).
Intersecting ZCTA
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.
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Bath 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.
-
Peak HPSA score 19.0 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 Bath County's active designations would take about 3.5 additional clinician FTEs, with dental the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 1.3 primary care, 0.9 mental health, 1.4 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
-
33.3% of Bath County's 6 active designations are primary care.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 2 primary care, 2 mental health, 2 dental (denominator 6).
Corpus placement
Active-designation volume placement
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Bath County carries 6 active designations, above 54% of real US counties. Use the state peer line below before treating the national percentile as a local access verdict.
State peer position. Bath County falls in the upper half of KY counties by active-designation volume, at rank 32 of 120. 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: 21011. Population: 12,750.
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 6 active (designated) HPSAs in Bath County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| LI - Bath County | primary_care | 19.0 |
| LI - Bath County | dental | 19.0 |
| St Claire Regional Family Medicine-Owingsville | primary_care | 17.0 |
| St Claire Regional Family Medicine-Owingsville | mental_health | 17.0 |
| St Claire Regional Family Medicine-Owingsville | dental | 17.0 |
| Bath County | mental_health | 14.0 |
Moderate-burden reading for Bath County
Peak severity leads this reading: Bath County's highest active HPSA score is 19.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Bath County's shortage runs equally deep in primary care and dental care: both scored 19.0 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 58.0, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Bath County sits in the middle of the national designation-volume distribution (above 54% of counties) with 6 active records. That is enough for a formal shortage footprint without landing in the heaviest US tier. Compare the three discipline counts (2/2/2) before assuming every care category is equally short.
Bath County falls in the upper half of KY counties by active-designation volume, at rank 32 of 120. For moderate counties, the useful move is usually a state peer check plus the score cards above, not a national superlative claim.
Bath County designations by care type
Active Health Professional Shortage Area designations in the county, by provider category (high-priority disciplines emphasized).
- Primary care
Primary care
2 designations
- Mental health
Mental health
2 designations
- Dental
Dental
2 designations
Mid-pack clinician FTE gap for Bath County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Bath County's active designations: about 3.5 FTE, a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse, Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA) + Medically Underserved Areas/Populations (MUA/P) HPSA primary-care, mental-health, and dental designations for Bath 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 Bath County's designations
Bath County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Bath County's 6 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.
Nearby primary-care score peers
Closest U.S. counties on active primary-care HPSA score to Bath County's 19.0. Open Lancaster County, NE or Sacramento County, CA next.
Showing 3 of 2932 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
Counties near Bath County's primary score of 19.0
One peer set for this severity-led county: nearest active primary HPSA score to 19.0 (severity lead on this page is “LI - Bath County”).
Lancaster County, NE
19.0 primary score · 322,608 pop.
Sacramento County, CA
19.0 primary score · 1,585,055 pop.
Salt Lake County, UT
19.0 primary score · 1,185,238 pop.
San Joaquin County, CA
19.0 primary score · 779,233 pop.
South Central Connecticut County, CT
19.0 primary score · 571,298 pop.
Washoe County, NV
19.0 primary score · 486,492 pop.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Bath County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Bath County carries an MUA designation (index 58.0; 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 Bath County's peak score of 19.0?
- "LI - Bath County" leads the active set (score 19.0; primary care; 1,365 people in the service area; ~1.3 FTE still needed on the record; designated 01/27/2012). Clearing 17 opens NHSC high-priority placement for the matching provider type on the designated geography. Discipline mix across 6 active rows: 2 primary care, 2 mental health, 2 dental.
- Which other active designations sit under Bath County's severity reading?
- After "LI - Bath County", the next active names on this release are "LI - Bath County", "LI - Bath County", "ST CLAIRE REGIONAL FAMILY MEDICINE-OWINGSVILLE" and "ST CLAIRE REGIONAL FAMILY MEDICINE-OWINGSVILLE". Provider need (id-de-duped) totals ~3.5 FTE across disciplines that still carry a gap.
- Which federal pathways follow Bath County's high-severity geography?
- Bath County's 6 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 "LI - Bath County".
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 21011. 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 21011 (Bath County, KY), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 6; peak score 19.0; signature peak score 19.0. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.