IN · Healthcare shortage profile
Ripley County, IN
MUA standing opens this profile: Ripley County sits inside a Medically Underserved Area indexed at 57.9 (lower index = greater measured need). Population 28,995.
- Active HPSAs
- 1
- Population
- 28,995
- Peak shortage score
- 9.0
- MUA Index
- 57.9
Light-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Ripley County carries a comparatively light shortage burden - 1 active HPSA designation, more than 2% of the 3,289 real US counties, with mental health the deepest gap.
- 1
- Active HPSA designations
- 1
- Mental-health shortages
- 9
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 98%
- US counties by volume
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Ripley County, IN 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 Ripley County's active designations would take about 2.7 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 2.7 mental health. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
-
100% of Ripley County's 1 active designations are mental health.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 0 primary care, 1 mental health, 0 dental (denominator 1).
-
Peak HPSA score 9.0 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.
Ripley County's mid-pack ZIP footprint
14 Census ZCTAs intersect Ripley 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.
Corpus placement
Designated volume without a high-priority score
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Ripley County carries 1 active designation, above 2% 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. Ripley County falls in the lower half of IN counties by active-designation volume, at rank 73 of 92. 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: 18137. Population: 28,995.
Medically Underserved Area
Active HPSA scores
Current designated records only · mental health only on this FIPS. Scores range 0–25 (primary/mental health), 0–26 (dental). Higher = greater need. What counts as a high score?
Highest-severity HPSA designations
All 1 active (designated) HPSAs in Ripley County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Mhca 4: Franklin/Ripley/Ohio/Dearborn/Switzerland | mental_health | 9.0 |
Light-burden reading for Ripley County
MUA standing opens this profile: Ripley County sits inside a Medically Underserved Area indexed at 57.9 (lower index = greater measured need). Ripley County's severest measured gap is in mental health, scored 9.0 of 25, still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 57.9, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Ripley County carries 1 active designation and sits below the national mid-pack (above 2% 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.
Ripley County falls in the lower half of IN counties by active-designation volume, at rank 73 of 92. Read the active scores and the deepest-care guide link below before collapsing this county into a "no shortage" story.
Score neighbours for Ripley County's MUA-led profile
One peer set beside the MUA standing: nearest primary-care HPSA score.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Ripley County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Ripley County carries an MUA designation (index 57.9; lower = greater measured need) in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
- How do Ripley County's HPSA rows sit beside the MUA?
- 1 active HPSA designation (0 primary care / 1 mental health / 0 dental); highest-scored active name is "MHCA 4: Franklin/Ripley/Ohio/Dearborn/Switzerland" (score 9.0; mental health; 94,500 people in the service area; ~2.7 FTE still needed on the record; designated 10/29/2025). MUA and HPSA are separate tracks, one does not substitute for the other.
- What does the 9.0 HPSA score mean next to the MUA?
- 9.0 sits below the 17-point high-priority HPSA line. MUA index 57.9 remains a separate need measure.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 18137. This county’s designations come from BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_MH.csv (mental health) — 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 18137 (Ripley County, IN), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 1; peak score 9.0; signature MUA index 57.9. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.