IA · Healthcare shortage profile
Buchanan County, IA
Peak severity leads this reading: Buchanan County's highest active HPSA score is 17.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Population 20,565.
- Active HPSAs
- 5
- Population
- 20,565
- Peak shortage score
- 17.0
- MUA Index
- 56.7
Mid-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Buchanan 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
- 17
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 53%
- US counties by volume
Dense ZCTA lattice over Buchanan County
Buchanan County intersects 16 Census ZCTAs, above the 15-ZIP dense-tercile cut. Shortage designations still attach at the county (or smaller HPSA) grain; the ZIP list is geography, not a second severity score.
Largest land-share ZCTAs in this county
4 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 Buchanan County, IA 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 17.0 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 Buchanan County's active designations would take about 2.1 additional clinician FTEs, with primary care the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 1.1 primary care, 1 mental health. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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40% of Buchanan 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).
Buchanan 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. Buchanan County falls in the upper half of IA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 36 of 99. Ties share a rank; the comparison uses the same current designated records as the national chart.
Healthcare shortage designations from HRSA. FIPS: 19019. Population: 20,565.
Single high-priority discipline
Buchanan County's only high-priority (≥17) footprint is mental health
Current HRSA Data Warehouse rows attribute 2 active mental health designations to Buchanan County , with a peak score of 17.0. 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 Buchanan County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Regional Family Health Winthrop | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Buchanan County MH | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Regional Family Health Winthrop | dental | 15.0 |
| Regional Family Health Winthrop | primary_care | 13.0 |
| Buchanan County | primary_care | 9.0 |
Moderate-burden reading for Buchanan County
Peak severity leads this reading: Buchanan County's highest active HPSA score is 17.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Buchanan County's severest measured gap is in mental health, scored 17.0 of 25, past the 17-point line HRSA uses to open National Health Service Corps placement and enhanced Medicare reimbursement. Primary care reads 13.0 of 25; Dental care reads 15.0 of 26. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 56.7, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Buchanan 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.
Buchanan County falls in the upper half of IA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 36 of 99. 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 Buchanan County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Buchanan County's active designations: about 2.1 FTE, a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
Acting on Buchanan County's high-priority mental health
Buchanan County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Buchanan 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 IA before drawing conclusions from a single score. IA 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 Buchanan County's 17.0. Open Thurston County, WA or Boone County, MO next.
Showing 3 of 3081 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
Counties near Buchanan County's mental score of 17.0
One peer set for this severity-led county: nearest active mental HPSA score to 17.0 (severity lead on this page is “REGIONAL FAMILY HEALTH WINTHROP”).
Thurston County, WA
17.0 mental score · 294,793 pop.
Boone County, MO
17.0 mental score · 183,610 pop.
Hampton City County, VA
17.0 mental score · 137,148 pop.
Cowlitz County, WA
17.0 mental score · 110,730 pop.
Cleveland County, NC
17.0 mental score · 99,519 pop.
Cape May County, NJ
17.0 mental score · 95,263 pop.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Buchanan County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Buchanan County carries an MUA designation (index 56.7; 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 Buchanan County's peak score of 17.0?
- "REGIONAL FAMILY HEALTH WINTHROP" leads the active set (score 17.0; mental health; 78,625 people in the service area; designated 08/18/2019). 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 Buchanan County's severity reading?
- After "REGIONAL FAMILY HEALTH WINTHROP", the next active names on this release are "REGIONAL FAMILY HEALTH WINTHROP", "Buchanan County MH", "REGIONAL FAMILY HEALTH WINTHROP" and "REGIONAL FAMILY HEALTH WINTHROP". Provider need (id-de-duped) totals ~2.1 FTE across disciplines that still carry a gap.
- Which federal pathways follow Buchanan County's high-severity geography?
- Buchanan 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 "REGIONAL FAMILY HEALTH WINTHROP".
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 19019. 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 19019 (Buchanan County, IA), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 5; peak score 17.0; signature peak score 17.0. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.