MN · Healthcare shortage profile
St. Louis County, MN
Peak severity leads this reading: St. Louis County's highest active HPSA score is 25.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Population 200,231.
- Active HPSAs
- 25
- Population
- 200,231
- Peak shortage score
- 25.0
- MUA Index
- 50.3
Heavy-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, St. Louis County ranks among the most underserved counties in the country - 25 active HPSA designations, more than 97% of the 3,289 real US counties, with primary care the deepest gap.
- 25
- Active HPSA designations
- 9
- Dental shortages
- 25
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 3%
- US counties by volume
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for St. Louis County, MN 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 25.0 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 St. Louis County's active designations would take about 29 additional clinician FTEs, with dental the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 9.8 primary care, 5.6 mental health, 13 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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36% of St. Louis County's 25 active designations are primary care.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 9 primary care, 7 mental health, 9 dental (denominator 25).
Dense ZCTA lattice over St. Louis County
St. Louis County intersects 52 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
40 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
Active-designation volume placement
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, St. Louis County carries 25 active designations, above 97% of real US counties. Use the state peer line below before treating the national percentile as a local access verdict.
State peer position. St. Louis County sits among the top three county rank positions in MN, at rank 3 of 85. 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: 27137. Population: 200,231.
Medically Underserved Area
Peak severity 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 25 active (designated) HPSAs in St. Louis County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Superior Community Health Center | dental | 25.0 |
| Lake Superior Community Health Center | mental_health | 22.0 |
| Cook Area Health Services, Inc | dental | 22.0 |
| Cook Area Health Services, Inc | mental_health | 21.0 |
| Center for Amer Indian Resources | dental | 19.0 |
| Center for Amer Indian Resources | mental_health | 18.0 |
| Lake Superior Community Health Center | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Center for Amer Indian Resources | primary_care | 17.0 |
| LI - Duluth | dental | 17.0 |
| Bois Forte Health Services Vermilion | dental | 17.0 |
| Cook Area Health Services, Inc | primary_care | 16.0 |
| LI - Virginia | primary_care | 16.0 |
| LI-Region 3 Arrowhead | mental_health | 16.0 |
| Bois Forte Health Services Nett Lake | mental_health | 15.0 |
| LI - Virginia | dental | 15.0 |
| St. Louis SA | primary_care | 14.0 |
| Bois Forte Health Services Vermilion | primary_care | 14.0 |
| Essentia Health Ely Clinic | primary_care | 14.0 |
| LI -Duluth | primary_care | 13.0 |
| Bois Forte Health Services Vermilion | mental_health | 13.0 |
| Bois Forte Health Services Nett Lake | dental | 13.0 |
| Bois Forte Health Services Nett Lake | primary_care | 12.0 |
| Essentia Health Ely Clinic | mental_health | 12.0 |
| Greater St. Louis | dental | 12.0 |
| Essentia Health Ely Clinic | dental | 7.0 |
Heavy-burden reading for St. Louis County
Peak severity leads this reading: St. Louis County's highest active HPSA score is 25.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Dental care carries St. Louis County's deepest shortage reading, 25.0 on HRSA's 0–26 dental scale, 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; Mental health reads 22.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 50.3, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Volume places St. Louis County above 97% of real US counties (25 active designations: 9 primary care, 7 mental health, 9 dental). Peak severity on the current designated set is 25.0. The table on this page lists the highest-severity records first so a reader can see which named facilities, geographies, or population groups drive that burden without treating the county total as a personal appointment forecast.
St. Louis County sits among the top three county rank positions in MN, at rank 3 of 85. Heavy-burden counties are where NHSC placement, Community Health Center grant geography, and related federal instruments concentrate; eligibility still follows the designated area and provider type, not the county boundary alone.
St. Louis 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
9 designations
- Dental
Dental
9 designations
- Mental health
Mental health
7 designations
Heavy-volume FTE gap in St. Louis County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for St. Louis County's active designations: about 29 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 St. Louis County, MN · 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 a heavy-burden county
St. Louis County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- St. Louis County's 25 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 MN before you draw conclusions from a single score. MN 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 Similar Dental Shortage Score
Other U.S. counties whose active HRSA dental HPSA score is closest to St. Louis County's 25.0. This compares the designation score only, not local appointment availability or care quality. Start with Fulton County, GA and Erie County, NY.
Showing 6 of 2744 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
Counties near St. Louis County's dental score of 25.0
One peer set for this severity-led county: nearest active dental HPSA score to 25.0 (severity lead on this page is “LAKE SUPERIOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER”).
Fulton County, GA
25.0 dental score · 1,066,710 pop.
Erie County, NY
25.0 dental score · 954,236 pop.
El Paso County, TX
25.0 dental score · 865,657 pop.
Miami-Dade County, FL
25.0 dental score · 2,701,767 pop.
Tarrant County, TX
25.0 dental score · 2,110,640 pop.
Philadelphia County, PA
25.0 dental score · 1,603,797 pop.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does St. Louis County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - St. Louis County carries an MUA designation (index 50.3; 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 St. Louis County's peak score of 25.0?
- "LAKE SUPERIOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER" leads the active set (score 25.0; dental; 37,338 people in the service area; designated 10/26/2002). Clearing 17 opens NHSC high-priority placement for the matching provider type on the designated geography. Discipline mix across 25 active rows: 9 primary care, 7 mental health, 9 dental.
- Which other active designations sit under St. Louis County's severity reading?
- After "LAKE SUPERIOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER", the next active names on this release are "LAKE SUPERIOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER", "LAKE SUPERIOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER", "COOK AREA HEALTH SERVICES, INC" and "COOK AREA HEALTH SERVICES, INC". Provider need (id-de-duped) totals ~29 FTE across disciplines that still carry a gap.
- Which federal pathways follow St. Louis County's high-severity geography?
- St. Louis County's 25 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 "LAKE SUPERIOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER".
- How does St. Louis County's peak severity sit inside MN?
- St. Louis County holds 25 active HPSA rows with peak 25.0. St. Louis County sits among the top three county rank positions in MN, at rank 3 of 85. Score-nearest national peers appear below when the peer module renders. Score-nearest counties on this release include Fulton County, GA and Erie County, NY.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 27137. 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 27137 (St. Louis County, MN), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 25; peak score 25.0; signature peak score 25.0. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.