Medically Underserved Area Primary · mental · dental footprint

MT · Healthcare shortage profile

Toole County, MT

Peak severity leads this reading: Toole County's highest active HPSA score is 24.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Population 4,971.

Active HPSAs
6
Population
4,971
Peak shortage score
24.0
MUA Index
MUA

Mid-burden verdict

According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Toole 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
Dental shortages
24
Peak severity score (of 26)
Top 46%
US counties by volume

Key findings

What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Toole County, MT 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.

  1. Peak HPSA score 24.0 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.

  2. Closing Toole County's active designations would take about 4.7 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.

    HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 0.6 primary care, 4 mental health, 0 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.

  3. 33.3% of Toole 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).

Toole County's mid-pack ZIP footprint

10 Census ZCTAs intersect Toole 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

2 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, Toole 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. Toole County falls in the upper half of MT counties by active-designation volume, at rank 21 of 56. 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: 30101. Population: 4,971.

2
Dental HPSAs
2
Primary Care HPSAs
2
Mental Health HPSAs

Medically Underserved Area

MUA Designated

Active HPSA scores

Primary Care 22.0
Mental Health 21.0
Dental 24.0

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 Toole County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.

Name Type Score
Marias Healthcare Services Inc dental 24.0
Marias Healthcare Services Inc primary_care 22.0
North-Central Montana mental_health 21.0
Marias Healthcare Services Inc mental_health 17.0
LI - Toole County primary_care 15.0
AI/AN-Toole County dental 5.0

Moderate-burden reading for Toole County

Peak severity leads this reading: Toole County's highest active HPSA score is 24.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Dental care carries Toole County's deepest shortage reading, 24.0 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 22.0 of 25; Mental health reads 21.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, a separate HRSA designation from the HPSA records above.

Toole 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.

Toole County falls in the upper half of MT counties by active-designation volume, at rank 21 of 56. For moderate counties, the useful move is usually a state peer check plus the score cards above, not a national superlative claim.

Toole County designations by care type

Active Health Professional Shortage Area designations in the county, by provider category (high-priority disciplines emphasized).

designations
Source HRSA Data Warehouse, designated HPSAs As of 2026

Mid-pack clinician FTE gap for Toole County

HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Toole County's active designations: about 4.7 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 Toole County, MT · 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 Toole County's designations

Toole County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.

  • Toole 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 MT before you draw conclusions from a single score. MT 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 dental score peers

Closest U.S. counties on active dental HPSA score to Toole County's 24.0. Open St. Landry County, LA or Cabo Rojo County, PR next.

Showing 3 of 2744 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.

Counties near Toole County's dental score of 24.0

One peer set for this severity-led county: nearest active dental HPSA score to 24.0 (severity lead on this page is “MARIAS HEALTHCARE SERVICES INC”).

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Toole County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
Yes - Toole County carries an MUA designation in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
Which record sets Toole County's peak score of 24.0?
"MARIAS HEALTHCARE SERVICES INC" leads the active set (score 24.0; dental; 6,126 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 6 active rows: 2 primary care, 2 mental health, 2 dental.
Which other active designations sit under Toole County's severity reading?
After "MARIAS HEALTHCARE SERVICES INC", the next active names on this release are "MARIAS HEALTHCARE SERVICES INC", "MARIAS HEALTHCARE SERVICES INC", "North-Central Montana" and "MARIAS HEALTHCARE SERVICES INC". Provider need (id-de-duped) totals ~4.7 FTE across disciplines that still carry a gap.
Which federal pathways follow Toole County's high-severity geography?
Toole 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 "MARIAS HEALTHCARE SERVICES INC".

Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 30101. 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 30101 (Toole County, MT), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 6; peak score 24.0; signature peak score 24.0. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.